QUILT INDEX RECORD

25-21-375

Who documented this quilt?

Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin

Texas Quilt Search Number:

tqs_0041

Person filling out this form is:

Blood relative of quiltmaker; Quilt owner; Other

Source of the information on this quilt:

This quilt was identified and reviewed during the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association's Texas Quilt Search, 1983-1985. Karey Bresenhan served as quilt historian.

When was the form filled out?

1983-1985

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Quilt owner

If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?

Inherited

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

The present owner of this quilt is the great granddaughter of the quilt's maker.

This is a:

Finished quilt

Owner's name for quilt:

Mexican Rose

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

Rose of Sharon

How wide is the quilt?

92 in.

How long is the quilt?

94 in.

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Rounded

What color is the quilt?

Gold; Green; Red; White

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Good/moderate use

Damage:

Disintegration of fabric; Fading; Stains; Tears or holes; Wear to edge or binding

Describe the damage:

reds are showing beginnings of deterioration; greens are beginning to fade

Repairs:

Patched with period fabrics; Tear or hole sewn together

Notes on condition, damage, or repairs:

Small muslin patch on top binding. In 1985, as part of the preparations for the “Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1936” exhibit in the Texas Capitol Rotunda, the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association sponsored a Quilt Conservation Seminar. Part of the seminar was a two-day intensive hands-on laboratory attended by quilt experts who stabilized, backed, or otherwise prepared the quilts, including this one, for this exhibition.

Time period:

1876-1900

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1867

Date estimated by an antique dealer, quilt historian or appraiser:

ca. 1890

Who estimated the quilt's date?

Karey Bresenhan

Further information concerning dates:

Family history suggests that quilt maker made this quilt for her daughter, who was born in 1867.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

16

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Side by side

Number of different block patterns used in the quilt:

1

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Same block throughout

Number of borders:

1

Describe the borders:

red and green swags, with scalloped edge, joined with hearts

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric types used to make the quilt top:

Muslin

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Solid/plain

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?

no

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

What color is the back of the quilt?

White

Describe the back:

Same fabric used throughout; Solid/plain

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

Describe the binding:

narrow cotton binding with careful repairs

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

less than a half inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How thick is the quilt?

Thin (Less than 3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Thread type used for the quilting:

cotton

Color of thread used in the quilting:

white

Width between quilting lines:

1/2 in.

Can you see any knots on the front or back of the quilt?

no

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid/crosshatch; Outline

Quilting designs used, background fills:

Grid/crosshatch

Describe the quilting designs used:

1/2 in. cross hatch quilting in background; outline quilting of applique; 4 rows of outline quilting on upper swag border

Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:

Mexican Rose pattern appears ca. 1842. Superb applique, including delicate scallops on swags, which gracefully turn the corner, and curved petals and leaves. Narrow dark green binding. A formal, planned quilt that has had several careful early repairs on narrow green binding.

Quilt top made by:

Armstrong, Mary Ann Elizabeth Myers

Where the quilt was made, city:

Coleman

Where the quilt was made, county:

Coleman

Where the quilt was made, state:

Texas (TX)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Inheritance

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

This quilt was handed down in the family from the quilt maker to her daughter, Mary Dora Armstrong Bourland, the grandmother, and also a quilter, of the present owner.

Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

There is no consensus about when or where this quilt was made. The family believes it was made ca. 1867 and brought to Texas when the quilt maker and her family settled in Coleman, Coleman County, Texas. Karey Bresenhan, who reviewed this quilt in 1985, suggests it was made ca. 1890, which means it was made in Coleman.

Why was the quilt made?

Gift or presentation

The quilt was made to be used for:

Bedding, special occasion

Quilt is presently used as:

Bedding, special occasion; Keepsake/memento

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Describe the sources of the quilt's materials:

either purchased new or saved specifically for this quilt

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Public domain/traditional pattern

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

One of 62 Texas quilts exhibited in “Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1936,” Texas State Capitol Rotunda, Austin, Texas, April 19-21, 1986.

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association’s Texas Quilt Search Archives

Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:

Bresenhan, Karoline Patterson, and Nancy O'Bryant Puentes, “Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1936,” Vol. I, 1836-1936 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1986), pp. 104-105.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Ruth Evelyn Keith Latimer

Quilt owner's state:

Texas (TX)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Myers, Mary Ann Elizabeth

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

1832

Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:

Mississippi

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

United States

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

1909

Quiltmaker's occupation:

homemaker

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):

Armstrong, [inknown]

How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?

1

Who photographed this quilt?

Sharon Risedorph

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Assistant Director Winedale

Details

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