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Dutchman's Puzzle

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QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-423

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:

99.0222

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

1998:53.30

Object label:

Dutchman’s Puzzle
Mary Schafer, piecer
c1976
Flushing, Genesee County, Michigan
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#1998:53.30

Essay:

This quilt is an example of Mary’s interest in making and completing quilts incorporating pieces of the past. The fabrics all date from the early 1900’s. Mary’s finished quilt won the blue ribbon for best pieced quilt from old fabrics at the 1978 Festival of Quilts Contest in Santa Rosa, California.

Owner's name for the quilt:

Dutchman's Puzzle

Quilt top made by:

Schafer, Mary

Quilted by:

Schafer, Mary

Other people who worked on this quilt:

Maker of the blocks unknown

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

Purchased the quilt

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

1880 as quilt blocks

When was the quilt finished?

1976

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

Flushing

Quiltmaker's county:

Genessee

Quiltmaker's state:

Michigan (MI)

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Vida

Quiltmaker's birth date:

4-27-1910

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

Born Austria-Hungary 1910; emigrated to USA 1914

Quiltmaker's educational background:

9th grade

Quiltmaker's occupation:

Creamery worker; switchboard operator; book keeper; housewife

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Vida, Josef

Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:

Austrian

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Zelka, Julianna

Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:

Austrian

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' ethnic/tribal background:

German, Lutheran immigrant

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:

Welder for Buick Motors

Number of children:

1

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 40-49

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

no

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

yes

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?

Genessee Star Quilters

Where does/did the group meet?

Flint, Michigan.

What are the main activities of the group?

Raffle quilts, hospital quilts, many shows.

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

79 1/4'

How long is the quilt?

95"

Shape of edge:

Straight

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

What is inscribed on the quilt?

The earliest time and place of a Dutchman's Puzzle quilt is recorded as 1820-Staten Island, New York. Referred to here is Holland Dutch, to differentiate from Pennsylvania Dutch (properly German). It is not known whether the design originated with the Colonial Dutch. Mary Schafer 1976. Unbleached muslin is the background material of the quilt. The calico prints, ginghams, and chambrays are from the early 1900's. An interesting study of dress goods in that era. M.S. 1976

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1976

Location of inscription:

on back

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

20

Size of quilt blocks:

12" x 12"

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Separated by plain sashing

Sashing width:

3" muslin

Number of borders:

3

Describe the borders:

6" muslin; pieced; 3" muslin

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

2

How is the binding made?

Straight grain

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?

Polyester

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

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Outline

Describe the sources of the quilt's materials:

Mary Schafer collected old quilt blocks and made them into a finished quilt.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

The Mary Schafer Collection: A Legacy of Quilt History, East Lansing, MI, July 29-December 31, 2001, Michigan State Univeristy Museum

Contests entered:

Festival of Quilts, Santa Rosa California, 1978

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

Book, Mary Schafer and Her Quilts by Marston and Cunningham; Michigan State University Museum, 1990. Patterns; Templates; Prizes, awards, ribbons, etc. Photos of quilter; Interview with quilter; Clippings or photocopies; Audiotape; Videotape.

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?

Purchase

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

2/18/1998, Mary Vida Schafer

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Who photographed this quilt?

KEVA

Copyright holder:

Michigan State University Museum

Cite this Quilt

Schafer, Mar. Dutchman's Puzzle. 1976. 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=12-8-423. Accessed: 03/29/24

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