QUILT INDEX RECORD
12-8-450
Who documented this quilt?
Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection
Where are the records for this quilt housed?
Michigan State University Museum
Michigan Quilt Project Number:
99.0251
If this quilt is owned by a museum, enter the accession number:
1998:53.73
Object label:
Pennsylvania Dutch Flower Garden
Mary Schafer and Betty Harriman
Bunceton, Cooper County, Missouri and Flushing, Genesee County, Michigan
1973
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#1998:53.73
Essay:
Betty and Mary both contributed blocks to this quilt. The pattern is from Country Gentlemen magazine, a source of mail order patterns in the 1930s. The border is Mary’s original contribution. Mary had her neighbors sign the quilt blocks.
This is a:
Finished quilt
Owner's name for the quilt:
Pennsylvania Dutch Flower Garden
Names for quilt's pattern in common use:
Applique sampler
How wide is the quilt?
78 3/4"
How long is the quilt?
99 1/2"
Shape of edge:
Straight
Describe the quilt's layout:
Block pattern
Number of quilt blocks:
12
Size of quilt blocks:
16 1/2" x 16 1/2"
Arrangement of quilt blocks:
Straight
Spacing of quilt blocks:
Separated by plain sashing
Sashing width:
3 1/4"
What is the shape of the quilt blocks?
Sampler
Fiber types used to make the quilt top:
Cotton
Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Piecing
Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Applique
What kind of filling is used in the quilt?
Polyester
How are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Quilting designs used, overall motifs:
Outline
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:
7
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:
6
What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?
less than a half inch
Materials used to make the back:
Cotton
Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:
2
Method used to make the inscription:
Embroidery
What is inscribed on the quilt?
Mary Schafer
What is the date inscribed on the quilt?
1973
Quilt's condition:
Excellent/like new
When was the quilt finished?
1973
Time period:
1950-1975
Quilt is presently used as:
Museum collection
Where the quilt was made, country:
United States
Where did the maker find their pattern?
Commercial/Published source: Magazine
Commercial name of the pattern for the top:
From Country Gentleman magazine, called Brides Quilt by Charlotte Whitehill
Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:
The Mary Schafer Collection: A Legacy of Quilt History, East Lansing, MI, July 29-December 31, 2001, Michigan State Univeristy Museum
Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:
Quilter's Journal, vol. IV, no. 4 for more information on Betty Harriman. Book, Mary Schafer and Her Quilts by Marston and Cunningham; Michigan State University Museum, 1990. Photos of quilter; Patterns; Templates; Prizes, awards, ribbons, etc. Videotape; Audiotape; Interview with quilter
Quilt top made by:
Harriman, Betty Harned
Quilted by:
Schafer, Mary
Quiltmaker's city:
Bunceton
Quiltmaker's state:
Missouri (MO)
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
Other names quiltmaker was known by:
Harned
Quiltmaker's birth date:
9/22/1890
Quiltmaker's date and place of death:
6/21/1971
Quiltmaker's educational background:
William Wood High School. She earned a teaching degree from Warrensburg State College.
Quiltmaker's occupation:
She was a school teacher, the a hotel manager until her retirement.
Quiltmaker's father's name:
Harned, Ben
Quiltmaker's mother's name:
Harned, Betty Bradley
Quiltmaker's marriage date(s):
1917-1925 (she was widowed and never remarried).
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):
Harriman, Colonel R.L.
How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
From Relative
When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
Under 10 years of age
Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:
more than 50
Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?
no
Quilt owner's name:
Michigan State University Museum
Source of the information on this quilt:
Museum employee
How was this quilt acquired?
Purchase
Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:
2/18/1998, Mary Vida Schafer
Ownership of this quilt is:
Public Museum, Library, or Institution
Quilt owner's city:
East Lansing
Quilt owner's county:
Ingham
Quilt owner's state:
Michigan (MI)
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
Copyright holder:
Michigan State University Museum
Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:
Some blocks were made by Betty Harriman, others by Mary Schafer who also set them and completed the quilt. At some point Mary decided that the blocks needed to have signatures in them, so she took them around to her neighbors to have them signed.
Who photographed this quilt?
KEVA
How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?
Made quilt blocks or part of quilt top
If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?
Purchased the quilt
Shape of corners:
Straight
Describe where the inscription was found:
top
Describe any favorite patterns, tools, etc. used by the quiltmaker:
Betty loved intricate applique and highly technical piecing. She also liked heavily quilted and stuffed work.
Cite this Quilt
Harriman, Betty Harne. Pennsylvania Dutch Flower Garden. 1973. From Michigan State University Museum, Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=12-8-450. Accessed: 01/20/26
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