QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-5241

Who documented this quilt?

Kentucky Quilt Project; Michigan Quilt Project; Michigan State University Museum Collection; Black Diaspora Quilt History Project; Cuesta Benberry Collection

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Michigan State University Museum; University of Louisville Archives and Records Center

Michigan Quilt Project Number:

MI, 08.0062; KY, 34-17-10

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

MSUM #2008:119.2

Object label:

Lady's Shoe Quilt
Fanny Cork
St. Louis, Missouri
c1890
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#2008:119.2

Essay:

Fanny Cork was Cuesta's husband's grandmother. Cuesta believed that Fanny cut the shoe shaped without using a pattern. The Payless Shoe Company used this quilt in an advertising campaign.

By Mary Worrall, from the exhibit Unpacking Collections: the Legacy of Cuesta Benberry, An African American Quilt Scholar.

Quilt's title:

Lady's Shoe Quilt

Biography of the quiltmaker?

Great-great grandmother of Cuesta's husband.

When was the form filled out?

4/22/08

Quilt top made by:

Cork, Fannie

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

Received as a gift

Where the quilt was made, city:

Grand Rivers

Where the quilt was made, state:

Kentucky (KY)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Time period:

1876-1900

When was the quilt finished?

c1890

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

African American

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

92 1/2"

How long is the quilt?

67"

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Maroon; White

Quilt's condition:

Very good/almost new

Damage:

Stains

Type of inscription:

Initials

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Jor 3

Method used to make the inscription:

Ink

Location of inscription:

on back

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

30

Size of quilt blocks:

10" x 10"

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Separated by sashing with cornerstones or connecting blocks

Sashing width:

4"

Number of different block patterns used in the quilt:

1

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Solid/plain

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing; Machine Piecing

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

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:

5

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

7

Width between quilting lines:

1"

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid/crosshatch; Outline

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

Mrs. Benberry's husband's grandmother, Fannie Cork, made this quilt while living in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. In addition, the Payless Show Company used this quilt in their advertising campaign. The color combination of white and red is striking. Red and white quilts are the most universally appealing as red is the symbol in our society of love, blood, and red roses.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

It has been displayed at the Kentucky Quilt Project and has been quite famous by itself.

Louisville Celebrates the American Quilt: Always There - The African American Presence in American Quilts. Louisville, KY. February 7-March 31, 1992. Louisville Museum of History and Science.

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

In the book "Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts".

Source of the information on this quilt:

MSU 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)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Purchase

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

This quilt was collected by Cuesta Benberry to further her research on quiltmaking and/or African American quiltmaking. Her son donated the collection to the Michigan State University Museum when she passed away in 2007.

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:

MSU Board of Trustees