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