QUILT INDEX RECORD
18-14-34
Description:
Although several Gasperik quilts appear to be copies, in fact they are not. This matching pair of Blue Morning Glory quilts (#009 and #016) is an exception. They were made for Gasperik's son and daughter-in-law who probably requested the appliqué and quilting be identical because they were made for twin beds.
Where are the records for this quilt housed?
Mary Gasperik Legacy Project
Who documented this quilt?
Mary Gasperik Private Collection
Gasperik Legacy Project Number:
009
This is a:
Finished quilt
Quilt's title:
Morning Glory
Owner's name for quilt:
Blue Morning Glory (Doris)
How wide is the quilt?
66 inches
How long is the quilt?
98 inches
Shape of edge:
Scalloped
Shape of corners:
Scalloped
What color is the quilt?
Blue or Navy; Green; White
Overall color scheme:
Light or pastel colors
Quilt's condition:
Good/moderate use
Describe the type of inscription:
cloth label sewn to back lower left
What is inscribed on the quilt?
MARY GASPERIK
1411 W 174th STREET
EAST HAZELCREST
ILLINOIS
Method used to make the inscription:
Attached label; Ink
Location of inscription:
on back
Time period:
1930-1949
When was the quilt finished?
1938-1945
Date estimated by an antique dealer, quilt historian or appraiser:
1938-1945
Who estimated the quilt's date?
Merikay Waldvogel
Further information concerning dates:
Earliest estimated date is based on a 1938 packing slip for Bucilla kit #2005, Morning Glory.
Describe the quilt's layout:
Medallion or framed center
Describe the borders:
Three wide borders echo the scalloped edge. Colors of border are shaded from dark blue, through medium blue to light blue. Center panel is encircled with a morning glory vine. This border design element is part of the Bucilla kit #2005, Morning Glory.
Fiber types used to make the quilt top:
Cotton
Fabric styles used in the quilt top:
Solid/plain
Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Applique
Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:
Embroidery
Materials used to make the back:
Cotton
What color is the back of the quilt?
Blue or Navy
Describe the back:
Solid/plain
Materials used in the quilt binding:
Cotton
What kind of filling is used in the quilt?
Cotton
How are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Can you see any knots on the front or back of the quilt?
no
Describe the quilting designs used:
Gasperik created her own quilting patterns for this pair of blue Morning Glory quilts.
The elaborate basket of fruit and flowers quilted into the very center of this quilt is found on 4 Gasperik quilts: #009, #016, #024, and #061. It is from an unknown source. The scale and elaborateness of this quilted vase is reminiscent of commercial applique flower basket block patterns widely available in the 1930s and 1940s.
Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:
Applique is nearly identical in these two blue quilts except for one leaf turned in a different direction on each quilt.
Quilt top made by:
Gasperik, Mary
Quilted by:
Gasperik, Mary
Where the quilt was made, city:
Chicago
Where the quilt was made, county:
Cook County
Where the quilt was made, state:
Illinois (IL)
Where the quilt was made, country:
United States
How was this quilt acquired?
Inheritance
Why was the quilt made?
Gift or presentation
Details about why the quilt was made:
Made for her son Elmer and his wife, who may have requested them to be made in shades of blue.
The quilt was made to be used for:
Bedding, special occasion
Quilt is presently used as:
Keepsake/memento
Describe present uses of the quilt:
Mary's grandchildren regard her quilts as a unique collection to be preserved and appreciated.
Where did the maker get their materials?
Purchased new
Where did the maker find their pattern?
Commercial/Published source: Book; Commercial/Published source: Newspaper; Commercial/Published source: Kit
Where did the quiltmaker find the pattern for the quilting design on the quilt?
Commercial pattern
What is the commercial name of the quilting design used for this quilt?
Quilted oval feathered wreath may be adapted from quilting design #521 in Colonial Quilts by Hubert Ver Mehren.
Describe anything about the design of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:
Bucilla Applique Bedspread kit #2005, Morning Glory. Morning Glory Design No. 2005 kit was used to design the four Gasperik Morning Glory quilts, but Marie Webster's child's quilt design Morning Glory in pink was likely used as the inspiration for making adjustments and changes to the Bucilla design. Bucilla kits did not come in blue, they included multicolored flowers, and their flower and leaf pattern shapes do not match the shapes on the Gasperik quilts. It requires only 4 different pattern shapes to make the morning glory wreath: one flower, one bud, one calyx and one leaf. The patterns are simple: it is their arrangement and embroidery which create the beautiful complexity. Gasperik clearly admired the Bucilla border design. The Nancy Cabot quilt column (in the Chicago Tribune) also published a Morning Glory (oval wreath) quilt based closely on Marie Webster's 1912 design which appeared in her book and in Ladies Home Journal.
Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:
An exhibit tag which is separated from its quilt reads "Morning Glory Wreath First Prize in Springfield Mrs. Mary Gasperik".
The Quilts of Mary Gasperik, Ravenswood Historic Site, Livermore, CA, March 14-15, 1992.
Contests entered:
Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:
Merikay Waldvogel and Barbara Brackman. Patchwork Souvenirs of the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, (Nashville, TN: Rutledge Hill Press, 1993)102-103.
Merikay Waldvogel "One American Dream Comes True", Quilters Newsletter Magazine, March 2008, 46-49.
Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:
Bucilla kit #2005, Morning Glory with entire contents: instructions, paper pattern, green and white fabrics for the background and yellow, peach, orange, blue and henna for the floral elements.
A Lazarus packing slip "Form 100-1-38" dates the kit to 1938
Nancy Cabot newspaper illustration of Morning Glory; Marie Webster's color photo of child's quilt Morning Glory
Bucilla boxtop indicates the kit was available in two colors: Orange and white or Green and white. Salser has an ebay printout of a quilt offered for sale in 2003 which looks like a completed Green and white Bucilla kit. That ebay quilt had a sewn on patch identifying the quilt as a gift "Made by Mary Reid 1927 and presented to Betsy Nichols 1952 Christmas".
Ownership of this quilt is:
Private
Quilt owner's name:
Elmer Gasperik heirs - Kathy Jacob contact
Quilt owner's country:
United States
Person filling out this form is:
Relative of quiltmaker; Author/researcher
If you are a relative of the quiltmaker, how are you related? The quiltmaker is my:
Grandmother
Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:
Grand-daughter Susan Salser began this research effort in 1991, after she and her two sisters divided up the quilts which belonged to their mother (Elsie Gasperik Krueger) who died in 1988. Her ongoing research has been fruitful and interesting.
Quiltmaker's maiden name:
Mihalovits, Maria
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
Quiltmaker's birth date:
01/25/1888
Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:
Hungary
Quiltmaker's marriage date(s):
11/18/1906
Quiltmaker's date of death:
05/25/1969
Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:
Hungarian
Quiltmaker's educational background:
Elementary School
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Rural
Quiltmaker's city:
Chicago
Quiltmaker's county:
Cook
Quiltmaker's state:
Illinois (IL)
Quiltmaker's country:
United States
Quiltmaker's father's name:
Mihalovits, Istvan
Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:
Hungary
Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:
Hungarian
Quiltmaker's mother's name:
Mihalovits, Vidoszava
Quiltmaker's mother's birthplace:
Hungary
Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:
Hungarian
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):
Gasperik, Stephen
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' ethnic/tribal background:
Hungarian
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:
Milk Dealer/Grocery Store Owner/Butcher
Number of children:
3
How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?
1 (Elsie 1909-1988)
How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?
2 (Elmer and Stephen)
How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
From guild or club member; Self-Taught
When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?
Age 40-49
Why does the quiltmaker quilt?
Pleasure; Other
Other notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:
Mary Gasperik made quilts because it was her life passion and greatest talent. As opportunities arose, she entered contests and exhibited them publicly. She also made special quilts for her family.
Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?
Tuley Park Quilt Club and Detroit News Quilt Club
Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group?
Chicago, IL and Detroit, MI
What are the main activities of the group?
Chicago group met to quilt and held periodic quilt shows; Detroit group held national exhibits and contests.
Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:
more than 50
Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?
no
Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?
no
Who photographed this quilt?
Don Gonzalez
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
Copyright holder:
Susan Salser
Details
Cite this Quilt
Gasperik, Mar. Morning Glory . 1938-1945. From Mary Gasperik Legacy Project, Mary Gasperik Private Collection. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=18-14-34. Accessed: 11/07/24
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Gallery
Gasperik 04: Kit Quilts
Waldvogel, Merikay
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Ephemera
Bucilla-Morning Glory Design No. 2005
Bucilla
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Gasperik, Mary Quiltmaker
Mary Gasperik Legacy Project
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1938-1945
Morning Glory Gasperik, Mary
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1935-1945
Morning Glory Gasperik, Mary
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1938-1945
Morning Glory Gasperik, Mary
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1938-1945
Morning Glory Gasperik, Mary