Quilt History, Austin Area Quilt Guild, March 5, 2007

Kathleen H. McCrady

In November of last year, I was asked to join two others speakers at the opening of the Ima Hogg Quilt Exhibit at the Bob Bullock museum. My topic was “the history of quilting”. We were to limit our talk to 20 minutes! I had been teaching a class in quilt history for about 8 years in my Quilt History Study Hall at my home and it took a good three hours. When Lois learned that the person scheduled for this meeting had to cancel, she asked me if I would expand that program and share it with you. So this will be somewhere between 20 minutes and 3 hours! No I wont do that to you.

There was not enough time to show quilts at the Bullock, so tonight I have brought some quilt examples. However, I no longer have quilts and quilts top of the 1800-1900 time period, they were a part of my Quilt History materials that are now at the Center for American History at the University of Texas. Almost from the beginning of reproduction fabrics in the early 1980s, I have loved making quilts inspired from old quilts. The three quilts displayed here I will talk about as we go along, the other I will show at the end. I don’t want my helpers to have to stand and wait.

Sources for the information I will use are from the many books that have been published as a result of states quilt searches. About 75% of the states have done quilt searches to document quilts and have published books with quilts and history of the state. Kentucky Quilts, 1800-1900 was the first such documenting effort with a book published in 1982. In our state two books, Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1936 and the second 1936-1986 by Karoline Patterson Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes, published by the University of Texas press, is still available. Nancy is the founder and was the first president of our guild. Another book, Texas Quilts, Texas Women by one of our charter members, Suzanne Yabsley (now Labry) can sometimes be found. Also in my book there is a list of 125 books including state quilt searches and other historical books on the subject of quilts and quilt history. These books will recognize the part women played in the settling of the country that you wont find in the classroom history books.

In the time we have here, I will be giving you and a very brief history of quilts and quilt making as it applies to this country.

In America, before the industrial revolution, cloth would have been produced in the home by spinning and weaving. Those living near seaports would have had access to imported goods. However as early as 1790, Samuel Slater, who had worked in a British spinning factory, from memory built the first water-powered spinning factory in America.

The preparation of cotton for spinning was a tedious task. A woman by the name of Catherine Littlefield Green from Georgia conceived the cotton gin, designed it and perfected it. Then she got Eli Whitney to help her put the thing together and in 1793 the cotton gin was invented and is credited to Eli Whitney.

Almost 25 years later, the first fully powered textile factory was built in Lowell, Mass. and by 1840 there were 36 cotton printing establishments in the United States. This was the beginning of the textile industry that could now produce cotton cloth. After using the copper plate technology to print cloth, the invention of a roller-printing machine helped eliminate the need to import cloth from England and other countries.

Hand sewing was the method for making garments and quilts until the sewing machine was invented. Most credit Isaac Singer as the first to build a successful machine. He paired up with Edwin Clark and together they changed the lives of American women relieving them of time-consuming and eye-straining drudgery of hand stitching clothing for the family. A machine developed by Edwin Clark cost $125 but Singer and Clark got the price down to $50. Even that was too much for most homes, and came up with the idea of an installment plan. For as little as $5 down, $3 a month for 16 months, customers could own a sewing machine. In the 1850s before the Civil War, 40,000 machines had been produced. After the War and by 1876, 1.4 million had been sold.

Quilts in her home country before coming to America would have likely influenced the early quilt maker. In England the style of quilts were whole cloth, that is two layers of fabric and a filler that is heavily quilted or the medallion style quilt with a center focus, and then many, many borders added.

My quilt, Six X Six Comes Up Roses, is an example of a medallion style quilt. It has a center focus and many pieced borders around it. These reproduction fabrics date about 1985. The inspiration for the center came from a quilt in the Long Island Historical Society Museum, made about 1800.

Another style of quilt coming from this era is the quilt made with 4 large blocks with appliquéd flowers or designs, then finished with an appliquéd border. Many times these quilts are red and green.

Chintz, which is a glazed fabric probably imported are found in many quilts before the Civil War. As we study early quilts, we find certain colors and styles beginning to develop in American made quilts. In Baltimore where imported fabrics were easily available to wealthy living there, a style we call Baltimore Album quilts were made popular between 1845 and 1855. These were appliquéd blocks depicting historical places, homes or flowers and seem to be unique to that area. Quiltmakers in this revival have drawn inspiration from quilts in history, and many Baltimore Album style quilts are being made today.

However, the four block style quilts gave way to quilts using many blocks. Some use 12, 14, 16-inch blocks, such as the Floral Trails Folk Art Quilt. This quilt features pre-Civil War reproduction fabrics by Barbara Brackman & Terry Thompson. An 1860s quilt made in Pennsylvania was the inspiration for this quilt.

But during the Civil War, Jane A Stickle pieced the ultimate block quilt that we refer to as the Dear Jane Quilt. She pieced 169 4 ½” blocks and 52 triangle wedges for borders that was first pictured in the Vermont Search book by Richard Cleveland and Donna Bister. The quilt is signed In War Time 1863, Jane A Stickle, pieces, 5602. Brenda Papadakis published a book with patterns that has created a large following for Dear Jane. My quilt is made from reproduction fabrics by RJR. The inspiration came from quilts in the Smithsonian Museum. The name of my quilt is Tribute to the Smithsonian & Jane.

Mission and relief work during the Civil War took precedent over decorative sewing and quilting. The US Sanitary Commission handled volunteers and contributions. Many quilts were donated at “Sanitary Fairs”. Careful records were kept and as result of the fairs, 250,000 quilts and comforts were donated. Many homes sent their “best” quilt to this effort.

Many events in history affect the products that go into quilts. The Civil War began in 1861 and ends in 1865 that left the fields where cotton is grown in ruins. The price of cotton before the War was about 40 cents a pound, after the

War - $25 a pound. The destruction of homes and the loss of so many men who were the work force of the nation brought about a long recovery.

New fabrics were non-existent, so the homemaker used what she had and were the earliest recyclers. The dye used by the fabric industry after the War was a common vegetable dye, called madder that could produce a wide range of colors depending on the mordant used. By 1868, a coloring agent – alizarin, simplified the process. Then in the 1870s synthetic or aniline dyes were discovered that produced brilliant colors, but the down side was they tended to fade to a dun-colored brown. However, indigo blue, derived from the plant was a dye the spans time before the Civil War and after. Since few quilts are signed and dated, the dyes that were used give clues to when the quilt was made.

In the early 1870s, the celebration of the nation’s 100^th birthday in 1876 influenced the manufacture of cloth. Shirtings and waists prints were printed with small figures of animals, people and patriotic symbols, that today we call those “conversation” prints. From that time until about 1900 these will occur in pieced quilts. At the celebration, the Chinese brought an exhibit of silks, ceramics with cracked or crazed finishes, and many other items. The Americans fell in love with the crazed ceramics and quilt historians credit that influence behind the Crazy Quilt. This occurred also in what is referred to as the “Victorian Era” when ladies had many dresses made with velvet, satin, taffeta, velveteen, silks, etc. These went into quilts that were highly decorated with embroidery stitches. Seldom will a Crazy Quilt date before 1885 and they continued being made to the turn of the century before falling out of favor. Crazy quilts of long ago currently influence quiltmakers and they are much in favor today.

Following the Crazy Quilts, red and white embroidered quilts were the rage. Today we refer to these as “Redwork Quilts”, and they will date from around 1889 to 1920. Many of these quilts were made as fund rasiers for churches; they will not only have a date but also where it was made. Later many were also made to raise funds for the Red Cross, near the time of World War I. This is another instance of quilts from the past inspiring redwork quilts today.

The early 1900s was a dry time for quilt making. Not many great quilts are found; fabrics from 1900 to 1920 seem to be of poor quality. Lots of plaids and checks are found. World War I begins in 1914 and ends 1918. The War disrupted the domination of the German dye industry, thus the American fabric industry had to use its own resources to create dyes for textiles.

As a result of this, 1920s – 1930s brought us fabrics that were lighter, pastel, and clear colors. Rose Kretsinger, Carrie Hall, Ruth Finley, and Marie Webster wrote books about patchwork quits. Newspapers, rural and farm magazines published patterns of patchwork blocks. Also in rural America, home demonstration clubs gave the quilt maker the opportunity to share quilting with others.

In the era of the Great Depression, 1929 – 1940, there were thousands and thousands of quilts and quilt tops made. Most were pieced of patterns such as the Double Wedding Ring, Grandmother’s Flower Garden, Dresden Plate, Sunbonnet Sue, and Postage Stamp, just to name a few. There was competition to see how many pieces one could get into a quilt. An Iowa quilt maker made a quilt with 69,649 pieces but was soon topped by a Nebraska quilter making one with 86,769! We are still finding quilt tops on the market today that was made during this period. My own feeling is that this creative outlet kept many of the farmwomen from loosing their minds from worrying about crop failures and little money.

In 1933, Sears Patchwork Quilt Contest in connection with the Chicago World’s Fair, had 25,000 quilt entries. The top prize was $1000. The winning quilt was given to Eleanor Roosevelt, but sadly this quilt cannot be located.

With the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, this nation was again in war. Great changes took place, men of all ages, but mostly our young men went to war. Women filled their shoes on farms and by working in defense plants all over the country. Women worked in factories building airplanes, jeeps, tanks, bombs, and guns. Rosie the Riveter became the symbol representing women who relieved men for the war effort.

Today a panel of Rosie that says, “keep on quilting” is being reproduced. My Rosie is from a T-shirt purchased at the USS Lexington on the coast in Corpus Christi. I wanted to feature a very rare feedsack that has planes flying in a V shape with Morse code. Dot, dot, dot dash is the symbol for the letter V. Also the blue around the center is patriotic top hats.

Following WW II was another dry time for making quilts except in rural areas and church groups. No longer was it necessary to dress beds with home made quilts, women had money to buy blankets. Many women continued working while returning husbands went to college using their G-I bill. By the mid-1950s, the use of synthetic fabrics eliminated the starching and ironing of garments. The introduction of those wonderful double knits in the 1960 eliminated ironing altogether.

A few of us quilt makers were excited about the polyester battings that were on the market about 1963. It was lightweight, easy to quilt and those who were still quilting, loved it. Stearns and Foster, who had manufactured cotton batting since before the Civil War, began making polyester batting. Currently quiltmakers have many choices - cotton, polyester, combination of cotton/polyester. Wool and silk batts are also available.

Two events marked the beginning of this present quilt revival. In 1969, a Colorado mother, homemaker and quilter typed the first issue of Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine on a used $25 Royal typewriter on her kitchen table. Although Bonnie Leman has retired, the newsletter has continued for 38 years.

The other event was an exhibit of quilts in 1971 at the Whitney Museum of Art in New York City. Jonathan Holstein and Gail van der Hoof had collected quilts as abstract art in their hippy days around the country at various sales. The exhibit was such a popular event; it was extended for a longer period time. These two events were the catalyst for launching another quilt revival.

Following these two events, Good Housekeeping Magazine sponsored a quilt contest in 1976. This event had widespread coverage and the winning quilt was Jenny Beyer’s “Ray of Light”. It launched a quilting career for her that continues to this present time.

In the 1970s organized quilt making involved the forming of quilt guilds and quilting bees. Our guild started in 1979 with 59 charter members and we are now about 625. In Texas a quilt market was created in Houston about 1977. That made it easier for quilt shops in the mid-west to buy products for their customers. Quilt making has gone from small beginnings to worldwide recognition and competition. Quilt shows are held all over the United States as well as in Europe, Japan and Australia.

A survey in 2003 published in Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine listed seven of the top quilt shows in the country. Topping the numbers in attendance was the International Quilt Festival in Houston with about 54,000 in attendance and American Quilter’s Society show in Paducah, KY with 37,000. Corporate money awards for best of show in these contests range from $10 to $20 thousand dollars. Quilt makers from all over the world enter these shows with stiff competition.

Unlike our foremother who only bought fabric to back a quilt or to make sashing and borders, quilters today buy fabrics by the yard (or yards) especially for use in a quilt. Then they buy more fabric and store it on shelves, in closets, under the bed, in the trunk of the car …. so they will be sure to have just the right thing. Many times when the producers of fabrics print their first run, it might be the only time that bolt will be printed. So the quiltmaker has learned that when you see it, buy it.

Our mothers would be astounded to see the amounts of fabrics we accumulate. Fabrics to quilters can be compared to what oils and watercolors are to the painter. They are the pallets from which we create.

Many have a whole room in their home delegated to this art form with storage units, machines, design walls, and tools of every kind. No longer is it “a little old ladies” pastime; it covers a range of students from 8 to 85. Women and men use quiltmaking as a creative outlet for their own enjoyment, some teach and make a living in the quilting industry, and many enter quilts in juried and judged shows.

In a quilt survey by Quilts Inc. and Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine in 2006, the number of quilters in the United States was estimated to be 27 million, almost a 100% increase from 14 million 10 years ago in 1997. The survey shows that 73% of that 27 million use high speed Internet to see information about quilting. The new survey also reports the dedicated quilter’s spending was 2.89 billion, and increase of 34% from 2003. These dedicated quilt makers on the average have $6,517 of quilting tools and supplies and own almost $3,200 dollars worth of fabric.

No longer is the quilt maker making quilts primarily to cover beds for warmth, but she and he are using this medium to produce works of art in traditional form or one of a kind art quilts. In the late 1970s quilt makers began making small quilts, not baby quilts or bed quilts, but small quilts that could hang on the wall. The term “wall quilt” was new quilting terminology. Our foremothers never saw their quilts hanging on walls as decoration, only as they dressed their beds. Neat things happen when quilts are hung, quilt makers today use their design wall for viewing the best arrangement of blocks.

The quilter today has many tools our foremother never dreamed about. The rotary cutter and a plastic ruler entered the quilting world about 1978 or 79. It gave quilters the ability to cut many more pieces more accurately and quicker than scissors ever could. Machine piecing became acceptable, and machine quilting on the home sewing machine followed. Long arm quilting machines have given the quiltmaker the ability to complete a quilt in a fraction of the time it took our foremothers.

Quilt contests include categories for many different techniques. In 1989, the first machine pieced and machine quilted quilt, Corona II made by Carol Bryer Fallert, won the big top award of $10,000 in Paducah, Kentucky. There has been no turning back.

The quilter today has so many techniques to use, one finally has to choose favorites and many soon learn where their talents lie. While our foremothers made traditional and appliqué quilts using hand piecing and hand quilting, most of the following techniques or terms were not in their vocabulary. That list would include innovative quilts, art and pictorial in all sizes, round robin, T-shirt quilts, embellishing, fusing, computer-aided machine embroidery, beading, eye-spy quilts, journal and miniature quilts and others.

Those of us who were into quilting in the 50s & 60s had few printed patterns and books. Today there are hundreds of books available. Often we have trouble trying to decide what to make next, there are so many. The new quiltmaker can participate in a wide range of classes available at quilt stores and quilt guilds. Today there are many choices for improving and learning. Our foremothers were limited to neighbors sharing patterns, magazine and farm publications, home demonstration clubs, but mostly family members handing down their skills.

Currently, the manufactures of cloth cater to the home decorating industry and quiltmakers. Our department stores no longer have fabrics for making clothes. Our quilt stores are loaded with bolts and bolts of beautiful fabrics in all the latest colors and designs. Batiks have become a favorite fabric for many. One only has to browse in a quilt shop or the latest quilt fabric catalog to see the endless choices. Otherwise they have only four chain stores to shop: Jo Ann’s Fabrics, Hobby Lobby, Hancock Fabrics and Wal Mart.

One other subject I have not addressed is the quilts that flooded our quilt market from China in the 90s. These quilts created havoc and costs much less than American made quilts. The sad thing is that the Chinese women make only pennies an hour making quilts of poor quality and workmanship. When one of the national museums in Washington gave permission for some of our quilts in history to be reproduced, women went to Washington and protested before the Senate. Fortunately that was stopped. I can see where one would buy that type of quilt to send with a student going off to college rather than a quilt that has hours of work. But the purchase of those quilts will continue to harm American quilt industry.

Now if my quilt helpers will come we will show these quilts

on the table that represents many time periods.

1. Sunflower & Chain made in 1987 using indigo blue fabrics

representing 1845-1875.

2. Blazing Star made in 1980s using double or triple pinks that was popular in the 1880.

3. Colonial History Quilt made about 1927 representing the “redwork” quilts that were popular from 1890-1925.

4. Black Dolls Quilt started about 1920,finished in 1980s representing the 1925-1940 era.

5. Friendship or Signature Quilt made in 1932, important quilt with my family history.

6. Mosaic or Sandstorm Quilt made c. 1935 Depression Era.

7. Kit Quilt c. 1940 representing kit quilts 1930-1960.

8. Kimball’s Sack Quilt made in 1990s using vintage feedsacks, flour, sugar, meal and sugar sacks from 4 family sources.

9. Blazing Star made about 1945 in Gonzales, TX. Vivid red plaid prints in stars are striking.

10. Indian Wedding Ring started about 1960, finished 1980s. Shows garish orange, turquoise, rust fabrics of the 1950s.

11. Spools from the 60s made in the 1900s from geometric scraps of the 1960/70s.

I have already shown you my quilts made during this quilt revival. But what I have shown you does not completely cover quilts of today. I have done some innovative work and found it challenging and sometimes draining. At our own quilt show and at Quilt Festival in Houston we see how wide spread the making of art quilts has become. However, I found that I should leave the making of art quilts to others. I am the proud owner of three small art quilts and one miniature innovative quilt made by members of the guild.

12. Nature Calls by Mary Shepherd

13. Turquoise Pebbles by Sue Laurent

14. Oh Deer by Kathy York

15. Celebrate Feedsacks by Judy Crowley.

I have given you only a tiny glimpse into the history of quilts and quilt making. The current quilt revival is in its 38^th year, the longest time in history. It is changing, evolving and continuing. Hopefully there is no end.

I’d like to share a quote from Jean Ray Laury’s book, Getting It All Together Handbook published in 1977:

“With many people the need to create is as strong as the need to eat and to be loved, and if it is not fulfilled it is a serious thing. I try to help my students understand that it is an important and valid need and that they have the right to take care of this need without feelings of guilt.”