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Babcock Family Signature Quilt; "Christian Cross" "Album Quilt"

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QUILT INDEX RECORD

23-19-556

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

University of Rhode Island

Who documented this quilt?

Rhode Island Quilt Documentation Project

Rhode Island Quilt Documentation Project Number:

759

Person filling out this form is:

Quilt owner

When was the form filled out?

04/30/1994

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Quilt owner

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

Inherited

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Babcock Family Signature Quilt

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

"Christian Cross" "Album Quilt"

How wide is the quilt?

81 1/2 inches

How long is the quilt?

91 3/4 inches

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

Overall color scheme:

Multicolor

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Type of inscription:

Signature; Multiple Names; Date

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Squares ordered from top to bottom, right to left in lettered grid form: A1: Mrs Caroline Kennyon, A2: Mrs. Betsy Chapman, A3: Fanni E. Burdick, A4: Elizabeth Davis, A5: Sarah Risley, A6: Jessica F. Babcock, A7: Mrs. Button, A8: Elizabeth P. Babcock, A9: Lena Risley, B1: Miss Elizabeth Babock, B2: Sarah Button, B3: Mrs W.D. Babcock, B4: Mrs Perry G. Palmer, B5: Mrs Hattie Watrous, B6: Ruth C. (Babcock) Bill, B7: Sarah Holdridge, B8: Roanne J. Burdick, B9: Mary E.T. Allen, C1: Almira B. Ennis, C2: Eliza M. Still, C3: Mrs Elisha B. Palmer, C4: Mrs Alfred Bedford, C5: Mrs F.W. Taylor, C6: Mrs C.H. Smith, C7: Mary Esther Babcock, C8: Mrs Mary E. Remington, C9: Miss Betsey W. Babcock, D1: Hattie Babcock, D2: Mrs Clark Babcock, D3: Fanny Holdridge, D4: Flora E. Palmer, D5: Miss Mary P. Pendleton, D6: Mattie P. Babcock, D7: Mrs Margaret A. Dickens, D8: Suzi S. Vaughn, D9: Mrs Gerti Watrous, E1: Martha E. Thayer, E2: Mrs Melisa D. Macomber, E3: Ella J. Chesebro, E4: Eliza Allen, E5: Mrs John G. Vaughn, E6: Mrs E.E. Babcock, E7: Anna Button, E8: Mrs James Babcock, E9: Miss Gertrude Babcock, F1: Mrs Amanda R. Pendleton, F2: Mrs C.E. Emmons, F3: Miss Martha Maxon, F4: Mary E. Babcock, F5: Mrs Fannie E Babcock, F6: Amanda Webb, F7: Mother, F8: Mary E Palmer, F9: Miss Sybil A. Smith, G1: Hattie M. Green, G2: Little Sarah Emmons, G3: Mrs Lizzie V. Burdick, G4: Mrs John Stanton, G5: Mary E. Cundall, G6: M Hannah Watrous, G7: Miss Mary F. Taylor, G8: Betsey C. Wells, G9: Mrs J.D. Taylor, H1: Lydia B. Davis, H2: Sarah Babcock, H3: Mrs J.W. Randolph, H4: Mrs Charles Merritt, H5: Carrie A. Davis, H6: Viola M. Babcock, H7: Mrs Weeden Clark, H8: Mrs Betsy Davis, H9: Lila Risley.

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

February 1884

Method used to make the inscription:

Stamped; Ink

Location of inscription:

on block; multiple locations

Time period:

1876-1900

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1884

Describe the quilt's layout:

Block pattern

Number of quilt blocks:

72

Size of quilt blocks:

10-10 1/4 inches x 10-10 1/4 inches

Arrangement of quilt blocks:

Straight

Spacing of quilt blocks:

Side by side

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Squares

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Striped; Solid/plain; Print; Geometric; Plaid; Floral; Dotted

Describe the fibers or fabrics in the quilt top:

Roller printed

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing; 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

Describe the back:

Machine sewn

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

Fabric structure of the binding:

Plain weave

How is the binding made?

Straight grain; Hand sewn

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?

Cannot tell

How thick is the quilt?

Thin (Less than 3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Color of thread used in the quilting:

White

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

5 per inch

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

6 per inch

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Outline

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

Machine pieced only in horizontal direction when piecing together strips of blocks. Machine stitched around edge before applying the binding.

Quilt top made by:

Cundall, Mary Elizabeth Babcock

Where the quilt was made, city:

Ashaway

Where the quilt was made, state:

Rhode Island (RI)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Inheritance

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

Audrey Burdick Nowotarski, owner at the time of the documentation, received the quilt from her mother.

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

Four of the owner's relatives are on the quilt; her grandmother, Viola Babcock (Burdick), her great grandmother, Mrs. W.D. Babcock, and her great great grandmothers, Mrs. James Babcock and Mrs J.D. Taylor. The history of the quilt has been extensively documented by Stephen Nowotarski, husband of the owner. After the original documentation, Mr. Nowotarski provided much supplemental material relating to the history of the individuals on the quilt. Included in this information is the geneoglogy of the Babcock family, a personal diary of Tryphena Clarke Cundall (mother of Mary Elizabeth Babcock Cundall). All of this research is available for viewing in the RIQDP archives, housed at the University of Rhode Island Library Special Collection.

Why was the quilt made?

Autograph or friendship

The quilt was made to be used for:

Bedding, special occasion

Quilt is presently used as:

Keepsake/memento

Where did the maker get their materials?

Unknown

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Public domain/traditional pattern

Where did the quiltmaker find the pattern for the quilting design on the quilt?

Public domain

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

"Pieced and Patched: Rhode Island Quilts and the Textile Industry," Slater Mill Historic Site, Pawtucket, RI, September 15-December 20, 1994.

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

Research on Babcock family and the Babcock quilt conducted by Mr. Stephen Nowotarski available in the RIQDP files, held in the University of Rhode Island Library Special Collections.

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

Fig. 132 Welters, Linda and Margaret Ordonez (eds.), Down by the Old Mill Stream, Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 2000.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Babcock

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

09/20/1838

Quiltmaker's birthplace, city:

North Stonington

Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:

Connecticut

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

United States

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

1910

Quiltmaker's educational background:

Very little

Quiltmaker's religious affiliation:

Seventh Day Baptist

Quiltmaker's occupation:

Mill worker in Ashaway, RI.

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Rural

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Babcock, Hoxie

Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:

Rhode Island

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

White, Elizabeth Perry

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

Sheriff of Washington County

Number of children:

1

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure

Notes on how the quiltmaker learned, and how and why they quilt:

As a sheriff, quiltmaker's husband was frequently away from home and quiltmaker used quilting to fill the time alone.

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

5-20 quilts

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

no

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

only informally

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

Further information is available in the archives at the University of Rhode Island Library Special Collections.

Who photographed this quilt?

RIQDP

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Linda Welters

Cite this Quilt

Cundall, Mary Elizabeth Babcoc. Babcock Family Signature Quilt. 1876-1900. From University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island Quilt Documentation Project. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=23-19-556. Accessed: 03/29/24