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North Carolina Lily; Carolina Lily

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QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-23

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:

85.0038

If this quilt is owned by a museum, enter the accession number:

5987.1

Object label:

North Carolina Lily
Mary Ann Orilla Carolan
Wallaceburg, Ontario, Canada
1862
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#5987.1

Essay:

Mary Ann Orillia Karlan Carolan is remembered by her family as the first white baby to have been born in a settlement near Wallaceburg, Ontario, Canada. The town was subsequently named after her, and is now known as Orillia, Ontario, Canada. Carolan completed this quilt before marrying James Carolan and inscribed "MOK" The 21 pieced and applique lily blocks are set with an equal number of plain white blocks and are framed by a winding delicate grapevine border, which includes embroidered red tendrils.

From Michigan Quilts: 150 Years of a Textile Tradition

Owner's name for the quilt:

North Carolina Lily

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

Carolina Lily

Biography of the quiltmaker?

Family remembers, she was the first white child born in the Indian settlement in the Muskoka Lake District near Wallaceburg, Ontario. The town is now known as Orillia. The initials on the quilt were hers before she married James Carolan.

When was the form filled out?

12/19/1984

Quilt top made by:

Carolan, Mary Ann Orilla

Quilted by:

Carolan, Mary Ann Orilla

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

Received as a gift

Where the quilt was made, city:

Wallaceburg

Where the quilt was made, province:

Ontario

Where the quilt was made, country:

Canada

When was the quilt finished?

1862

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

Orillia (near Wallaceburg)

Quiltmaker's province:

Ontario

Quiltmaker's country:

Canada

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Karlan

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

about 97 when she died

Quiltmaker's religious affiliation:

Catholic

Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:

Sligo County, Ireland

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

89

How long is the quilt?

100

Shape of edge:

Straight

Quilt's condition:

Poor/very worn

Damage:

Disintegration of fabric

What is inscribed on the quilt?

M.O.K.

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1862

Describe where the inscription was found:

top

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

21

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Alternating with plain squares

Number of borders:

1

Describe the borders:

10 1/4" appliqued grapevine

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

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

5

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

5

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Another quilt

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

Michigan Quilts, plate 4, p. 20

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

The picture is of four generations of the family. Mary Nunneley who donated the quilt to the MSU Museum is the baby being held by her mother Bertha Agnes Beatty Gilbert. The other standing lady is Mary Ann Beatty, the donor's grandmother. The lady seated is the donors great grandmother and the quiltmaker, Mary Ann Orillia Karlan Carolan.

Source of the information on this quilt:

Museum employee

Ownership of this quilt is:

Public- Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's name:

Michigan State University Museum

Quilt owner's city:

East Lansing

Quilt owner's county:

Ingham

Quilt owner's state:

Michigan (MI)

How was this quilt acquired?

Gift

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

12-17-1984, Mary Nunneley, donor

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?

Made entire quilt

Who photographed this quilt?

Peter Glendinning

Copyright holder:

Michigan State University Museum

Cite this Quilt

Carolan, Mary Ann Orill. North Carolina Lily. 1862. 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=12-8-23. Accessed: 03/29/24

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