QUILT INDEX RECORD
12-8-108
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:
92.0034
If this quilt is owned by a museum, enter the accession number:
2000:54.2
Object label:
Bursting Star and Block
Mary Elizabeth Beardslee Durkee
Birmingham,Michigan
c1870
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#2000:54.2
Essay:
The work done for Digging Into Data aims to classify certain categories of quilts to answer questions about authorship and
enhance the metadata collected about the quilts. In the project’s initial phase, algorithms have been developed to classify quilts into two specific categories,“Crazy Quilts” and “Indigo Quilts,” and high performance computing has been utilized for processing power.
Owner's name for the quilt:
Bursting Star and Block
Quilt top made by:
Durkee, Mary Elizabeth
Quilted by:
Durkee, Mary Elizabeth
If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?
Received as a gift
Where the quilt was made, city:
Brimingham
Where the quilt was made, county:
Oakland
Where the quilt was made, state:
Michigan (MI)
Time period:
1876-1900
Details about why the quilt was made:
According to the appraiser (Mary J. Silber) this quilt is possibly a wedding quilt made by Mary E. Beardslee Durkee for her daughter, Martha L. Durkee.
Quilt is presently used as:
Museum collection
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
Quiltmaker's city:
Birmingham
Quiltmaker's county:
Oakland
Quiltmaker's state:
Michigan (MI)
Quiltmaker's maiden name:
Beardslee
Quiltmaker's birth date:
6/26/1824
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Rural
Quiltmaker's date and place of death:
8/7/1884 in Bloomfield, MI
Quiltmaker's father's name:
Beardslee, Samuel
Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:
English
Quiltmaker's mother's name:
Beardslee, Hannah Blaine
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' ethnic/tribal background:
Welsh
Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:
Farmer, landowner
Number of children:
1
How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?
1
This is a:
Finished quilt
How wide is the quilt?
86"
How long is the quilt?
98"
Shape of edge:
Straight
Shape of corners:
Straight
What color is the quilt?
White
Antique colors:
Indigo Blue
Quilt's condition:
Very good/almost new
Damage:
Stains
Describe the quilt's layout:
Block pattern
Number of quilt blocks:
16
Size of quilt blocks:
16" x 16"
Arrangement of quilt blocks:
Straight
Spacing of quilt blocks:
Side by side
Number of borders:
2
Describe the borders:
Inner border, 1" sawtooth; Outer border, 9 1/2" delectable mountain
Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Piecing
Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Applique
Materials used to make the back:
Cotton
Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:
10
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 are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:
4
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:
7
Describe the sources of the quilt's materials:
The family owned a dry goods store which was the source of their fabric.
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:
9/29/2000, Betty Quarton Hoard
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?
Made entire quilt
Who photographed this quilt?
Pearl Yee Wong
Copyright holder:
Michigan State University Museum
Cite this Quilt
Durkee, Mary Elizabet. Bursting Star and Block. 1876-1900. 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=12-8-108. Accessed: 03/29/24
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