QUILT INDEX RECORD

25-21-279

Who documented this quilt?

Winedale Quilt Collection, Kathleen H. McCrady Quilt History Collection, 1890-2001

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin

Texas Quilt Search Number:

W2h109.06

Alternate inventory control number:

QHSH-H-420

Person filling out this form is:

Quiltmaker

Source of the information on this quilt:

donor

When was the form filled out?

2004

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Participated in design of the quilt; Quiltmaker; Other

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

Made entire quilt

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

Designed quilt motif

Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:

donor

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986

Owner's name for quilt:

Crossroads to Texas Quilt

How wide is the quilt?

53 in.

How long is the quilt?

61 in.

Shape of edge:

Straight

Shape of corners:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

Blue or Navy; Burgundy; Gold; Red; White

Overall color scheme:

Multicolor; Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Excellent/like new

Notes on condition, damage, or repairs:

condition is perfect

Type of inscription:

Date; Message

Describe the type of inscription:

quilt title on top; ID label on back

What is inscribed on the quilt?

Top: Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986 Back: ID label reads: Crossroads to Texas 53 x 61 1985 Kathleen Holland McCrady Austin, Travis Co., TX. Made especially to be the banner for the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association special exhibit at State Capitol Rotunda April, 1986. Travelled with the exhibit to Austria, museum exhibits in Texas and to Australia. Blocks: all Texas patterns from Beverly Orbello's book Texas Quilting Primer, except Blue Bonnet Block--original by Thelma Hobbs, Austin, TX. Handpieced, embroidered, hand quilted all cotton fabrics, polyester batting by Taylor Bedding Co., Taylor, TX.

Method used to make the inscription:

Attached label; Ink; Other

Describe the method used to inscribe the quilt:

Quilt top title is appliqued

Location of inscription:

on back

Describe where the inscription was found:

top

Time period:

1976-1999

When was the quilt started?

1985

When was the quilt finished?

1985

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1985

Further information concerning dates:

donor made this quilt for use in a exhibition in Austin, Texas, in 1986.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Subject of the quilt:

Texas imagery, including Lone Star, bluebonnets, shape of state of Texas

Number of quilt blocks:

18 different blocks form border around the center medallion motif

Describe the quilt setting:

Eighteen blocks frame the central medallion; the blocks are separated by sashing between.

Number of different block patterns used in the quilt:

18

What is the shape of the quilt blocks?

Squares

Medallion size:

28 in. x 36 in.

Number of borders:

2

Describe the borders:

Navy strip border frames inner block border of 18 different pieced blocks, which frame the center medallion

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

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Novelty techniques used to make the quilt top:

Dimensional applique

Describe the techniques used to make the quilt top:

The shape of Texas motif at the quilt center has a small red star locating Austin, the capital of Texas; the words TEXAS SESQUICENTENNIAL and the numbers 1836 1986 are edged in blue stitching over red fabric.

Can you feel or see paper on the quilt that was used as a construction aid?

no

Materials used to make the back:

Cotton

What color is the back of the quilt?

Cream

Number of pieces of fabric in the quilt back:

1

Describe the back:

Hand sewn; Print; Same fabric used throughout

Materials used in the quilt binding:

Cotton

How is the binding made?

Hand sewn; Home cut; Straight grain

What is the width of the binding (measure on the top only)?

half inch - one inch

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton or polyester blend

How thick is the quilt?

Medium (3/16?)

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Thread type used for the quilting:

cotton

Color of thread used in the quilting:

white

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

10

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

10

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid diamond; Grid square

Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:

Other

Describe the quilting designs used:

Grid squares and diamonds in medallion field; outline quilting around motifs; each block incorporates different quilting patterns or shapes, including stars.

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

This quilt is almost a Texas sampler, with its different motifs in each block and varying quilting designs.

Quilt top made by:

McCrady, Kathleen Holland

Quilted by:

McCrady, Kathleen Holland

Where the quilt was made, city:

Austin

Where the quilt was made, county:

Travis

Where the quilt was made, state:

Texas (TX)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Gift

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

Kathleen McCrady, a life-long and award-winning quiltmaker and quilt historian from Austin, Texas, made this quilt to be used as a banner for the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association’s exhibition of quilts in the Texas State Capitol in April 1986. Kathleen also assembled antique quilts, quilt blocks, feedsacks, patterns, quilt publications, and quilt ephemera to form her Quilt History Study Hall in Austin, where she taught quilt history and dating from 1996 to about 2001. She donated this quilt and the contents of her extraordinary Quilt History Study Hall to the Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin, beginning in 2002. Her collection, the Kathleen H. McCrady Quilt History Collection, 1890-2001, is available for research at the Center for American History. Additional information about Kathleen McCrady can be found in Kathleen H. McCrady, My Journey with Quilts: Over 70 Years of Quiltmaking 1932-2003 (Austin: 2005). The transcript of an interview with Kathleen McCrady is available at www.centerforthequilt.org/qsos/qsos/html.

Why was the quilt made?

Art or personal expression

Details about why the quilt was made:

Kathleen McCrady made this quilt to be used as the banner for the Texas Sesquicentennial Quilt Association's exhibition of quilts in the Texas State Capitol in April 1986.

The quilt was made to be used for:

Artwork/wall hanging

Quilt is presently used as:

Museum collection; Study or teaching aid

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Commercial/Published source: Book

Describe the source of the pattern:

Block designs based on Beverly Orbello, A Texas Quilting Primer; Texas bluebonnet block based on a design by Thelma Hobbs of Austin, Texas.

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

Published material

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

Even though Kathleen McCrady used two sources for inspiration for the quilt blocks in this commemorative quilt, she adapted those designs and created his quilt's overall design herself. She notes that she drafted the patterns from the Beverly Orbello book A Texas Quilting Primer to an eight-inch size for frmaming the quilt's center medallion.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

Exhibited widely: "Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1986," Texas State Capitol 1986, plus nine other Texas cities 1986-1988; Quilt Europa, Salzburg, Austria, 1886; South Australia Quilt Guild, Adelaide, Australia, 1988.

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

Additional information about Kathleen McCrady can be found in Kathleen H. McCrady, My Journey with Quilts: Over 70 Years of Quiltmaking 1932-2003 (Austin: 2005). The transcript of an interview with Kathleen McCrady is available at www.centerforthequilt.org/qsos/qsos/html.

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

This quilt appears in Karey Bresenhan and Nancy Puentes, "Lone Stars: A Legacy of Texas Quilts, 1836-1936," Vol. 1 (Austin, University of Texas Press, p. 148); Austin American Statesman, 1986; Southern Living Magazine, 1987; Brochure, Farm Credit Bank of Texas, 1988; "Fabric of a Cultural Legacy Calendar, University of Texas at Austin, 1995; Additional information about Kathleen McCrady can be found in Kathleen H. McCrady, My Journey with Quilts: Over 70 Years of Quiltmaking 1932-2003 (Austin: 2005)p. 98. The transcript of an interview with Kathleen McCrady is available at www.centerforthequilt.org/qsos/qsos/html.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Public Museum, Library or Institution

Quilt owner's name:

Winedale, Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin

Quilt owner's city:

Round Top

Quilt owner's county:

Fayette

Quilt owner's state:

Texas (TX)

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

Holland, Kathleen

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

1925

Quiltmaker's birthplace, city:

Cooke County

Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:

Texas

Quiltmaker's birthplace, country:

United States

Quiltmaker's educational background:

completed high school

Quiltmaker's occupation:

homemaker; clerical; quilting teacher, quilt historian

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Rural

Quiltmaker's county:

Travis

Quiltmaker's city:

Austin

Quiltmaker's state:

Texas (TX)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's father's name:

Holland, Joe P.

Quiltmaker's father's birthplace:

Pottsboro, Grayson County, Texas

Quiltmaker's mother's name:

Holland, Lue Retta Booher

Quiltmaker's mother's birthplace:

Sherman, Texas

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

Texas National Guard instructor

Number of children:

4

How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?

2

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

2

How did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

From Class; From guild or club member; From Relative; Self-Taught

When did the quiltmaker learn to quilt?

Age 11-19

Why does the quiltmaker quilt?

Fundraising; Gifts; Necessity; Pleasure

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

commemoration

Does/did the quiltmaker belong to a group? Name of the group?

formal and informal groups in Austin, including Austin Area Quilt Guild

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

more than 50

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

yes

Does/did the quiltmaker teach quilting?

yes

Describe any favorite patterns, tools, etc. used by the quiltmaker:

Although Kathleen states that she has tried many innovative techniques and designs, she regards herself as a traditonal quilter who always comes backs to traditional designs.

Describe any unique traditions, quilting related customs, beliefs, songs or rhymes used by the quiltmaker:

use of her pieces of her children's clothing in quilts

Who photographed this quilt?

Billy Moore

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Assistant Director Winedale

Details

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