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Cathedral Window; Tea Leaf, Compass, Lover's Knot, Lafayette Orange Peel, Circle Upon Circle, Bay Leaf, Pinchusion
CITE THIS QUILT
QUILT INDEX RECORD
12-8-9302
Who documented this quilt?
Michigan Quilt Project
Where are the records for this quilt housed?
Michigan State University Museum
Michigan Quilt Project Number:
86.0912
Owner's name for the quilt:
Cathedral Window
Names for quilt's pattern in common use:
Tea Leaf, Compass, Lover's Knot, Lafayette Orange Peel, Circle Upon Circle, Bay Leaf, Pinchusion
Brackman # or other source & #:
301
Biography of the quiltmaker?
I found this newspaper clipping among my grandmothers "treasures" in 1984 after her death. Bertha Edens Cos. When a little girl of six years, I went to school in a little log school house in the woods, had a lady for a teacher. We had a bench for eats that only six or eight could sit on, which had no backs. I went one mile to school, crossed a big branch with a foot log to cross on. When the water was up the big boys would carry the little ones to the log and helped us across. We lived in a little log house with the cracks plastered with mud. We just had one room with a fireplace and cook stove, in one corner. We had our beds and tables, all we had in the log house, but it was nice and warm. We knit our own stockings in those days. We had flannel clothes made of sheeps wool. We sheered our sheep, washed and picked the dirt out, took it to a carden machine made into rolls spun and colored, took the rolls to the weaver which was then made into cloth then into a dress, made janes for mens pants. The were nice and warm. We planted corn by hand, father would get the ground ready, mark it off both ways, they would take us children to the field with them. I would stay with my two younger brothers under a shade tree, mother would drop the corn and father would cover it with a hoe. We'd stay till noon to get dinner, then go back and stay till night. We raised a few acres of buckwheat, cut it with a cradle, had some buckwheat cakes to eat and cornbread too in winter. We raised cane for sorgham molasses in place of sugar. We never bought any groceries, only coffee, it was green, and we had to brown and grind it. We had potatoes and turnips, cabbage and made kraut to last all winter. I never saw a carpet till I was twelve years old, then father bought us a home, built us a house. Mother made us a carpet for winter. They tacked it around the wall. In spring, they furnished the house, put the carpet on the floor, so we thought it was nice. Had a nice orchard of all kinds of fruit and of course got better little at a time and on the 4th of December, 1884, I married Thomas Hunter Edens. To this union seven children were born. Three have passed away, Charlie, Albert, and Russell four still living, Lester of Homer, Illinois, Pearlie of Tusluca, Illinois; Nellie Simmons of Cairo, Illinois and Bertha Travis of Detroit, Michigan. We lived together for fifty and one-half years. In July, 1935, he passed away, then I was left all alone. I left our home, went to live with my oldest son, Lester at Homer, Illinois. I was born and lived in Clay County, Illinois until I was seventy five years old then went to Homer, Illinois. Written by Oma Eden in 1937. Departed this life Nov. 1st, 1946 at the age of 86 years and two months.
When was the form filled out?
8/25/1986
Quilt top made by:
Holman, Oma
Quilted by:
Holman, Oma
If you are a relative of the quiltmaker, how are you related? The quiltmaker is my:
Quilt owner
If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?
Inherited
Where the quilt was made, city:
Clay City
Where the quilt was made, county:
Clay
Where the quilt was made, state:
Illinois (IL)
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
Quiltmaker's county:
Clay
Quiltmaker's state:
Illinois (IL)
Quiltmaker's birth date:
9/1/1860
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Rural
Quiltmaker's date and place of death:
11/1/1946
Quiltmaker's occupation:
homemaker
Quiltmaker's father's name:
Holman, John
Quiltmaker's father's ethnic/tribal background:
English
Quiltmaker's mother's name:
Holman, Sarah
Quiltmaker's mother's ethnic/tribal background:
English
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:
farmer
Number of children:
7
How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?
2
How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?
5
Why does the quiltmaker quilt?
Necessity
This is a:
Finished quilt
How wide is the quilt?
75 1/2"
How long is the quilt?
85 1/2"
Shape of edge:
Straight
Quilt's condition:
Fair/worn
Damage:
Wear to edge or binding
Describe the repairs:
Rek-stitched
Describe the quilt's layout:
Block pattern
Arrangement of quilt blocks:
Straight
Spacing of quilt blocks:
Alternating with plain squares
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
Novelty techniques used to make the quilt top:
Cathedral window
Materials used to make the back:
Cotton
What color is the back of the quilt?
Blue or Navy
How is the binding made?
Bias grain
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:
7
Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:
6
Describe the quilting designs used:
Outline/Ditch
Person filling out this form is:
Quilt owner
Source of the information on this quilt:
Great granddaughter of quiltmaker
Ownership of this quilt is:
Private
Quilt owner's name:
Donna Merritt
Quilt owner's city:
Hancock
Quilt owner's county:
Houghton
Quilt owner's state:
Michigan (MI)
How was this quilt acquired?
Inheritance
Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:
Oma Holman to daughter Bertha Cox to daughter Doris E. Merritt to daughter Doona S. Merritt
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?
Made entire quilt
Copyright holder:
Michigan State University Museum
Cite this Quilt
Holman, Om. Cathedral Window. From Michigan State University Museum, Michigan Quilt Project. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=12-8-9302. Accessed: 03/29/24