QUILT INDEX RECORD

2-33-63

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Signature Quilt Pilot Project

Who documented this quilt?

Signature Quilt Project Public Submission

Signature Quilt Pilot Project Number:

1997.007.0479

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Chintz Applique

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

Album

How wide is the quilt?

110 inches

How long is the quilt?

93 inches

Type of inscription:

Date; Multiple Names

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Sturgeon, William Rodgers/Born September 26, 1843 "Schaffer, Elizabeth/Aug 1844 and Schaffer, Debby/August 1844" (same block) "Craig, Helen/1844, Craig,Josephine/1844" (same block) All signatures are written in ink on three blocks.

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

09/26/1843, 8/1844

Method used to make the inscription:

Ink

Location of inscription:

multiple locations

Time period:

1800-1849

Date estimated by an antique dealer, quilt historian or appraiser:

1843

Further information concerning dates:

Multiple dates. One is listed as the birth date of William Rodger Sturgeon, September 26, 1843. Other dates are either 1844 or August, 1844.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Floral

Describe the fibers or fabrics in the quilt top:

Queen Victoria chintz yardage

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

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

Unusual figural quilting designs of baskets and flowers are found in this quilt design

Quilt top made by:

Unknown, quiltmaker

Where the quilt was made, city:

Shippensburg

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

There are five names inscribed in ink on this quilt. No historical documentation of the individuals can be found. Though the name William Rodgers Sturgeon is listed on historical records, none match the birth date listed on the quilt. The other names are inscribed in pairs and appear to be related. They read "Elizabeth Schaffer/Aug. 1844, Debby Schaffer, Aug. 1844" and "Josephine Craig 1844 and Helen Craig, 1844." This quilt was purchased by Ardis and Robert James from Christies, New York in 1990. In 1997, it was donated to the International Quilt Study Center at the University of Nebraska along with approximately 950 quilts from the Jameses personal collection

Why was the quilt made?

Unknown

Describe the source of the pattern:

Unknown

Describe anything about the design of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

William Rodgers Sturgeon appears on a second chintz applique signature quilt, made in Springfield, Ohio, c. 1852. His name is featured on a block with Richard and Helen Sturgeon and what appears to be his sisters Helen and Mary. Census record locate Helen and her daughters in the Philadelphia area in 1850, 1860 and 1870. The related quilt also features the Queen Victoria chintz fabric and a chintz calla lily fabric. A number of possibilities were located in historical records for the women's names inscribed on the quilt, however without further documentation, no conclusive results can be reached.

Quilt owner's name:

International Quilt Study Center & Museum

Quilt owner's city:

Lincoln

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Description of quilt:

A medallion quilt, featuring a chintz fabric that depicts Queen Victoria in a garden. Surrounded by a grid of blocks all composed of chintz applique motifs.

Who photographed this quilt?

owner

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

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