QUILT INDEX RECORD

25-21-107

Who documented this quilt?

Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin

Texas Quilt Search Number:

tqs_0138

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker; Quilt owner

Source of the information on this quilt:

This quilt was reviewed and documented during the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association's Phase II of the Texas Quilt Search, 1986-1989. Karey Bresenhan served as quilt historian.

When was the form filled out?

1986-1989

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Quiltmaker; Quilt owner

How did the quiltmaker participate in the creation of the quilt?

Made entire quilt

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

Made the quilt

If the source helped design the quilt, describe their input:

Designed quilt motif

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

The quiltmaker owns this quilt.

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Sesquicentennial Medallion Quilt

Owner's name for quilt:

Sesquicentennial Medallion

How wide is the quilt?

75 in.

How long is the quilt?

84 in.

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Blue or Navy; Red; White

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Type of inscription:

Date; Initials

What is inscribed on the quilt?

MMS 1836-1986 [maker's initials; 150 years of Texas Independence]

Method used to make the inscription:

In the quilting

Describe the method used to inscribe the quilt:

quilted on

Location of inscription:

on block

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

1986

When was the quilt finished?

1986

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1986

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Subject of the quilt:

Texas Sesquicentennial

Number of quilt blocks:

central framed medallion

Number of borders:

3

Describe the borders:

Three elaborate borders of red, white, and blue frame the central medallion. The inner border contains navy blue squares set on point on a white field; the middle border features 24 eight-pointed red stars; and a striped red, white, and blue outer border completes the quilt.

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric types used to make the quilt top:

Broadcloth

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Print; Solid/plain; Striped

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:

Same fabric used throughout

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

How is the binding made?

Bias grain

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?

Polyester

How thick is the quilt?

Medium (3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Thread type used for the quilting:

cotton

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

7

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

9

Width between quilting lines:

1 - 2 in.

Can you see any knots on the front or back of the quilt?

no

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Outline

Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:

Other

Describe the quilting designs used:

Outline quilting, plus stars quilted on the points of central star in medallion and circles within stars in border.

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

This quilt features a central medallion containing a navy blue Texas five-pointed star with a red Texas star in its center and a white Texas star within the red star. "T E X A S" is appliqued in white onto the points of the large blue star.

Quilt top made by:

Sibley, Marilyn McAdams

Quilted by:

Sibley, Marilyn McAdams

Where the quilt was made, city:

Houston

Where the quilt was made, county:

Harris

Where the quilt was made, state:

Texas (TX)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Made by owner

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

Texas history professor and quiltmaker Dr. Marilyn Sibley made this quilt to help furnish and decorate her family's ranch house. The house was built by her great-grandfather in the 1840s, and Dr. Sibley hit on the idea of adding a quilt to its decor. She felt she could not afford to purchase what quilt she wanted and so decided to make one.

Why was the quilt made?

Home decoration

Details about why the quilt was made:

commemorate the Texas Sesquicentennial

The quilt was made to be used for:

Artwork/wall hanging

Quilt is presently used as:

Artwork/wall hanging

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Public domain/traditional pattern

Describe the source of the pattern:

original motifs utilizing traditional quilt patterns

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

Dr. Sibley purchased the striped fabric for this quilt some time before she made the quilt. As she began her project she discovered just how much fabric it takes to match and miter striped to turn corners in quilts. By the time she needed more of the striped fabric, her store had sold out. "Thus," she notes, after the center medallion of this quilt was made, the pattern was determined more by the leftover scraps than my a master plan."

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

"Great Texas Quilt RoundUp," 1986 Austin; American International Quilt Association

Contests entered:

Blue ribbon for history and symbols at "Great Texas Quilt RoundUp," 1986 Austin; blue ribbon, American International Quilt Association

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

Three-times published author by University of Texas Press; past president of the Texas State Historical Association; Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association, Texas Quilt Search Archives

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

Bresenhan, Karoline Patterson and Nancy O'Bryant Puentes, Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, Vol. II, 1936-1986 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990), p. 176-177.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's name:

Sibley, Dr. Marilyn McAdams

Quilt owner's state:

Texas (TX)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

McAdams, Marilyn

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birthplace, city:

Walker County

Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:

Texas

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

United States

Quiltmaker's educational background:

Rice University, PhD

Quiltmaker's occupation:

Texas history professor, author

Quiltmaker's state:

Texas (TX)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's father's name:

McAdams, [unknown]

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):

Sibley, [unknown]

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

account agent for Allstate Insurance

Number of children:

3

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

3

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 40-49

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Pleasure

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

"the pleasure of the product"

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

1-5 quilts

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

no

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

no

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

Dr. Sibley is descended from John McAdams, Jr., who came to Texas in 1832 and fought in the Texas Revolution. Dr. Sibley has published three books and many articles on Texas history. She has no needlework interests other than quilting. She made her first quilt, an Ocean Waves, in 1972. Her interest in quilting stems from her work to restore the ca. 1840 family home in Walker County.

Who photographed this quilt?

Sharon Risedorph

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Assistant Director Winedale