QUILT INDEX RECORD

26-22-3333

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

West Virginia Department of Archives and History

Who documented this quilt?

West Virginia Heritage Quilt Search

The West Virginia Heritage Quilt Search Number:

50098

Source of the information on this quilt:

ROSALIE GLENN, DAUGHTER

When was the form filled out?

August 7, 1992

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

Received as a gift

Interviewer:

MARGARET MEADOR, Key by: JR

Where was the quilt documentation day held?

CHARLESTON

Owner's name for quilt:

LONE STAR

Names for quilt's pattern in common use:

LONE STAR, MEXICAN STAR

Brackman # or other source & #:

3703, p. 511

How wide is the quilt?

74.5

How long is the quilt?

65.5

Shape of edge:

Straight

What color is the quilt?

White; Red

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

Quilt's condition:

Fair/worn

Damage:

Fading

Describe the damage:

filling/batting visible, Fragile

Type of inscription:

Other

Time period:

1930-1949

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1924

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

1925

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Sashing width:

No sashing

Number of borders:

2

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Solid/plain; Floral

Describe the fibers or fabrics in the quilt top:

Muslin, Percale

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Machine Piecing; Hand Piecing, Machine Piecing; Hand Piecing

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

no

Description of the back:

Muslin

What color is the back of the quilt?

White

Describe the back:

Same fabric used throughout; Solid/plain

How is the binding made?

Straight grain; Hand sewn

What kind of filling is used in the quilt?

Cotton

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Thread type used for the quilting:

Single thread, Cotton thread

Color of thread used in the quilting:

WHITE

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 1:

5

Number of quilting stitches per inch, place 2:

5

Width between quilting lines:

1.5

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

no

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid/crosshatch; Outline; Other

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

Pieced back

Quilt top made by:

DODSON, MAMIE ROSALIE

Other people who worked on this quilt:

Lewis, Charles William

Where the quilt was made, city:

BIRCH RIVER

Where the quilt was made, county:

NICHOLAS

Where the quilt was made, state:

West Virginia (WV)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

Tell the story of how the quilt was obtained:

1958

Why was the quilt made?

Gift or presentation; Teaching or learning sample; Therapy

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new; Sewing scraps

Describe the source of the pattern:

TRADITIONAL

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

In 1908 my mother (Mamie Rosalie Lewis) was born on a farm at Birch River, Nicholas County, WV. At the age of 16, in 1924, she had a horse-riding accident which resulted in the loss of her left arm just below the shoulder. She & her father (Charles WM Lewis) were very close, so as part of her recovery process, he decided to help her learn to sew with one hand. At first he would pin the fabric to the top of a foot stoolto keep it from slipping while she sewed. After she mastered this, he decided to help her make a quilt. He fashioned a piece of leather to fit over her knee, so she could use this to push up against the back of the quilt when it was in the frame to bump the needle against when she was quilting. They made the "Lone Star" but he told her a "lone" star was bad luck so they added 4 smaller stars. Thanks to her father's patience and determination she learned to handle needle and thread quite skillfully with just one hand and this ability helped her many times in her lifetime. After marriage, her first children were twins, then two singles, she made all their clothes, including coats, etc., plus her own. When left a widow, she supported her 2 children at home with seamstress work, going on to professionally make custom-made draperies, some of which are still hanging in many homes and businesses in the Charleston area. After many years of use, the quilt became very worn and tattered. She covered it with fabric on both sides, stitched it down by machine, and gave it to me for my children's beds. I did not know that quilt was inside and took no special care of it. In 1988, just before she died, I asked her what had ever happened to that quilt. When she told me where it was I resued it and very carefully removed the cover from it. Needless to say, this quilt is so special, not only for the memories, but for the lessons taught. Rosalie (Dodson) Glenn Route 8 Box 448 South Charleston, WV 25309 Phone: 304-744-1837

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

Letters, Sewing tools related to the quiltmaker

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

LEWIS

Quiltmaker's birth date:

April 15, 1908

Quiltmaker's birthplace, city:

BIRCH RIVER

Quiltmaker's birthplace, state:

West Virginia (WV)

Quiltmaker's marriage date(s):

1933

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

August 5, 1988

Quiltmaker's ethnic background/tribal affiliation:

DUTCH/IRISH

Quiltmaker's educational background:

College

Quiltmaker's religious affiliation:

BAPTIST

Quiltmaker's occupation:

HOMEMAKER/SEAMSTRESS

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Rural

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

DODSON, WALTER

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' ethnic/tribal background:

ENGLISH GERMAN INDIA

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

TRUCK DRIVER MAINTEN

Number of children:

4

How many of the quiltmaker's children were girls?

3

How many of the quiltmaker's children were boys?

1

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

Quiltmaker learned to quilt from: MOTHER FAT

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

1

Does/did the quiltmaker sell quilts?

no

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

Place to quilt: BEDROOM, Favorite pattern: LONE STAR, Type of frame: WOODEN, Type of sewing: DRESS,DRAP

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

Quiltmaker was paid to sew, Husband's birth month: January, Husband's birth day: 24, Husband's birth year: 1909, Husband's birthplace: CHARLESTON WV, Husband's date of death: month: January, Husband's date of death: day: 22, Husband's date of death: year: 1954, Husband's burialplace: CHARLESTON WV GRACEL, Quiltmaker's church: 1ST BAPTIST ST ALBANS, Quiltmaker's burialplace: CHARLESTON WV GRACELAND

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

West Virginia Heritage Quilt Search