QUILT INDEX RECORD

12-8-7823

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:

85.2139

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

6119.33

Object label:

Rose Basket
Bozena Vilhelmina Clarke
Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
Top made in 1939, quilted in 1943
Collection of Michigan State University Museum acc.#6119.33

Essay:

The "Rose Basket" quilt is in the style of a pattern designed by Anne Orr, a needlework and quilting designer from Tennessee who wrote a column and was needlework editor for Good Housekeeping magazine from 1919 until 1940. The trademark look of Orr's pieced designs is that they replicate the look of a cross-stitch pattern. A multitude of one-inch, finished squares are positioned to form the quilt's design.

Bozena Clarke began this quilt on October 11, 1938, completed the piecing in 1939, and entered it in the May 1940 Detroit News Quilt Show where it was awarded a third prize. The top was quilted in 1942 and then presented to Harriet Clarke for her high school graduation.

By Mary Worrall, excerpted from American Quilts from Michigan State University Museum.

Quilt's title:

Rose Basket

Owner's name for the quilt:

Rose Basket

Quilt top made by:

Clarke, Bozena Vilhelmina

Quilted by:

Clarke, Bozena Vilhelmina

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

Received as a gift

Where the quilt was made, city:

Detroit

Where the quilt was made, county:

Wayne

Where the quilt was made, state:

Michigan (MI)

Time period:

1930-1949

When was the quilt started?

1938-9

When was the quilt finished?

1942

Why was the quilt made?

Gift or presentation

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's city:

Detroit

Quiltmaker's county:

Wayne

Quiltmaker's state:

Michigan (MI)

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Motl

Quiltmaker's birth date:

2/24/1871

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Urban

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

3/17/1967

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

Bohemian (Czech)

Quiltmaker's educational background:

8th grade

Quiltmaker's religious affiliation:

Congregational

Quiltmaker's occupation:

Worked for a tailor, then as a homemaker.

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Motl, Franc

Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:

Austria

Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:

Bohemian (Czech)

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Motl, Ann Smely

Quiltmaker's mother's birthplace:

Austria

Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:

Bohemian (Czech)

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

English

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

Lighting salesman and insurance salesman.

Number of children:

3

How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?

2

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

From Friend

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 50 or over

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Therapy

Other notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:

Bozena was an accomplished needle worker when she leaarned to quilt from the Rebecca Jane Circle from her church.

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

20-50 quilts

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

yes

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

only informally

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

Rebecca Jane Circle

Where does/did the group meet?

Boulevard Congregational Church

What are the main activities of the group?

They quilted tops for each other and their friends.They also sewed items like aprons that they sold at the churchh's bazaars.

This is a:

Finished quilt

How wide is the quilt?

73 3/4

How long is the quilt?

94

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Rounded

What color is the quilt?

Brown; Green; Pink; White

Overall color scheme:

Multicolor

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Type of inscription:

Date; Message

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Rose Basket Started Oct. 11, 1938 by Bozena Clarke-piecing finished in 1939-pieced top awarded third prize May 1940 in the Detroit News Quilt Show Quilted 1942 by Bozena V Clarke High School Graduation Gift to Harriet Ann Clarke June 1942

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1939-42

Method used to make the inscription:

Attached label; Embroidery

Describe the method used to inscribe the quilt:

cross stitch

Location of inscription:

on back

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Number of quilt blocks:

3888

Size of quilt blocks:

1 x 1

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Side by side

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Squares

Number of borders:

5

Describe the borders:

1 3/8", 1 1/4", 2 3/4", 1 5/8", 1 7/8"

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

Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?

no

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

2

Describe the back:

Same fabric used throughout

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

Fabric structure of the binding:

Plain weave

How is the binding made?

Bias grain

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

less than a half inch

How wide is the binding (measure on the top only)?

1/4

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How thick is the quilt?

Thin (Less than 3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

7

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

7

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Single parallel lines

Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:

Cables

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Commercial/Published source: Pattern

Describe the source of the pattern:

The pattern came from the Detroit News.

Commercial name of the pattern for the top:

Was probably an Ann Orr design.

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

Image of quiltmaker, story of quitmaker in Michigan Quilt: 150 Years of a Textile Tradition by Ruth Fitzgerald and Marsha MacDowell; oral history told be her grand daughter, Harriet Clarke.

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

Image of quiltmaker, story of quitmaker in Michigan Quilt: 150 Years of a Textile Tradition by Ruth Fitzgerald and Marsha MacDowell; oral history told be her grand daughter, Harriet Clarke.

Person filling out this form is:

Quilt owner

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?

Gift

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

This quilt was given as a gift to the quiltmakers granddaughter, Harriet Clarke for her high school graduation in 1942. Harriet donated it to the MSU Museum in 1985.

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

The quilt was made to be used for:

Bedding, special occasion

Describe any favorite patterns, tools, etc. used by the quiltmaker:

Bozena read the Detroit News quilt columns and collected patterns from them.

Who photographed this quilt?

Fumio Ichikawa

Copyright holder:

MSU Board of Trustees