American Quilts of the 19th. Century.
Scrap quilt, c1840 with blocks set on point and containing many early 1800's fabrics.
Early American Quilts
The American quilt making tradition has its roots in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. It was primarily during this period that quilt making became a part of the American woman’s needlework experience. Before this time, fabric had been expensive, used carefully and often recycled into garments until it was no longer in useful condition.
Surviving quilts from this earliest period are unfortunately rare, and are not often seen today outside of collections. Usually held in museum collections, they are kept in careful storage and only brought out on rare occasions for an exhibit. Others are held in private quilt collections, and rarely if ever on exhibit. Every once in a while an early quilt that has been passed down through a family is seen at an auction, or perhaps discovered by an antiques dealer and put up for sale, to go into another collection. Most are fragile and not strong enough to be used on beds or as wall hangings or even hung in museum exhibits or quilt shows.
Because they are now 200 years in age, time has often taken its toll on the fabrics in these early antique quilts, since fabrics deteriorate with wear and use. Even if quilts were used infrequently and carefully kept in storage, many will still show signs of deterioration. The very processes of preparing and printing the fabrics that these quilts were made from, were often damaging to the fabrics. Dyes often contained caustic ingredients that weakened the fabrics and subsequently today these fabrics are in very fragile condition. This may preclude early quilts from being exhibited and necessitate continuous storage in optimum conditions, and the only time we see them is when they are included in a catalog of the museum's quilt collection.
Close-up of the above quilt. Pieced blocks alternate with plain fabric blocks.
Another reason there are so few of these early quilts existing today is that there were not many of them made. In comparison to the number of quilts made later in the century when fabrics were more available and women had more leisure time, these early quilts were made in much fewer numbers. This was a time of upheaval for many American families and many women did not have large amounts of time to devote to hand work, but were leading busy lives providing necessities and comfort for their families. Most of the quilts that we see from this period come from some of the earliest families to settle along the coast of New England, families that were living in established towns. Many of these women lived in prosperous households that allowed them some leisure time for sewing and quilt making.
Museum collection and exhibit books are good sources for more information on these earliest quilts. State quilt documentation and quilt history books are an additional source. Museums sometimes hold exhibits of their early quilts, and sometimes host visiting exhibits from other museums. Often these are the only alternative we have to see these earliest quilts.
Quilts 1825 to 1860.
Early in this period printing processes and fabric manufacturing were undergoing changes that would make fabrics more affordable for the average American, but fabrics were still expensive and many were imported from England, France, and other countries.
Nonetheless quilt making was becoming an enjoyable and acceptable pastime for American women who had time for handwork. They were discovering a wonderful outlet for their artistic and creative abilities.
During this period in American quilt history we see that several quilt construction styles were in use. Some earlier quilt styles from the 18th. Century continued to be used in 19th. Century quilts, even as they were throughout quilt history and are still used today. This was a transitional period for some quilt styles, for example the embroidered or stenciled quilt which would lose popularity with quilt makers with the influx of new appliqué designs. The whole cloth quilts, strip quilts, medallion quilts, and appliqué and patchwork quilts took on new looks with the new fabrics made possible by advancing cloth-printing techniques. There were also several new types of quilt styles to come out of this period, including the friendship or album quilt and the four block quilt.
Early in this period printing processes and fabric manufacturing were undergoing changes that would make fabrics more affordable for the average American, but fabrics were still expensive and many were imported from England, France, and other countries.
Nonetheless quilt making was becoming an enjoyable and acceptable pastime for American women who had time for handwork. They were discovering a wonderful outlet for their artistic and creative abilities.
During this period in American quilt history we see that several quilt construction styles were in use. Some earlier quilt styles from the 18th. Century continued to be used in 19th. Century quilts, even as they were throughout quilt history and are still used today. This was a transitional period for some quilt styles, for example the embroidered or stenciled quilt which would lose popularity with quilt makers with the influx of new appliqué designs. The whole cloth quilts, strip quilts, medallion quilts, and appliqué and patchwork quilts took on new looks with the new fabrics made possible by advancing cloth-printing techniques. There were also several new types of quilt styles to come out of this period, including the friendship or album quilt and the four block quilt.
Whole cloth quilts.
The earlier 18th. Century quilt style of the whole cloth quilt was still a quilt maker’s favorite. This style of quilt was made using several yards of a favorite fabric, and these quilts were often part of a coordinated set of bedroom furnishings consisting of bed quilt, bed hangings and window coverings including valances. Fabrics varied, and included calendared or glazed fabrics of wool, plain or floral printed calicos and muslins, and glazed chintz monochrome or polychrome prints. Fine woolen and plain colored cotton or linen quilts were heavily quilted in elaborate quilting designs, often with design motifs stuffed so the quilting would stand out in relief. In other quilts the fabrics, printed with ornate and colorful floral designs, dominate the quilt, and the quilting designs go unnoticed, the elaborate fabrics all but hiding the quilting stitches.
The earlier 18th. Century quilt style of the whole cloth quilt was still a quilt maker’s favorite. This style of quilt was made using several yards of a favorite fabric, and these quilts were often part of a coordinated set of bedroom furnishings consisting of bed quilt, bed hangings and window coverings including valances. Fabrics varied, and included calendared or glazed fabrics of wool, plain or floral printed calicos and muslins, and glazed chintz monochrome or polychrome prints. Fine woolen and plain colored cotton or linen quilts were heavily quilted in elaborate quilting designs, often with design motifs stuffed so the quilting would stand out in relief. In other quilts the fabrics, printed with ornate and colorful floral designs, dominate the quilt, and the quilting designs go unnoticed, the elaborate fabrics all but hiding the quilting stitches.
Whole cloth quilt c1830 made with a chintz pillar print.
Chintz fabric showing the pillar and floral details.
Strip quilts.
Made from several lengths of two or more fabrics alternating across the width of the quilt top, these quilts are a distinctive style of the period. Often the strips of fabric are alternated with strips of pieced blocks. Blocks were made in patterns like the Wild Goose Chase, four patch and nine patch, and diamond in square. Occasionally strips of pieced blocks were sewn together eliminating the strips of cloth. Quilting designs may carry across the quilt ignoring seam lines in fancy or plain geometric patterns. At other times these quilts are quilted along the length of the strips in rope, chain, feather and other continuous designs.
Squares in a strippy setting. Two fabrics are used for this quilt. c1840
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Close-up of the strippy quilt on the left.
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Wild Goose Chase blocks alternate with Uneven Nine patches and plain blocks set together in this strip quilt c1850.
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Close-up showing some of the many different fabrics in this strip quilt.
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Medallion quilts or frame quilts.
Made with a center emphasis, these quilts can vary in construction and technique. This was a popular quilt style in England throughout the 19th. Century. American quilt makers sometimes used this design layout for their quilts, often incorporating elaborate appliqué, as in the Broderie Perse quilts. Medallion patchwork quilts were often made around a special chintz fabric used for the center square, or a center square made from a mosaic of small piecework. Borders of different patchwork patterned blocks were added around these centers in rows, building out to the edges of the quilt.
Frame quilt, the center of quilt is made from fabrics, c1850, the outer border was added later about 1890.
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Frame type quilt made from small hour Glass blocks in the center and green and pink blocks around the center section. c1860
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Appliqué quilts.
The appliquéd quilts at the beginning of this period are rare and vary in style. Often patterns are simple floral designs, perhaps a single flower and stem, or a single medallion shape. Sometimes the quilts are done in the Broderie Perse method, where the quilt maker has taken a chintz fabric and cut out motifs and attached them by appliquéing them down or embroidering around the edges with a tiny buttonhole stitch. Later in the period, we see designs becoming more complex with the advent of the album quilts, in which every block in the quilt would be a different design. Designs are usually original to the quilt maker, and by the end of this period there would be hundreds, if not more, new appliqué designs in quilts. Appliquéd quilts would soon replace quilts that relied on stenciling or embroidery for their floral designs. A very few quilts actually contain stenciled or embroidered designs along with the pieced or appliqué work.
Applique quilt c1850 made from madder red prints.
Close-up of the applique quilt showing 4 of the blocks.
Album or signature quilts.
These quilts began to appear in the late 1830’s. During this time period there was a fad of filling autograph books with prose and signatures of friends. Album quilts are quilts made by more than one person, the makers pooling their efforts to produce blocks that were signed by the maker and then assembled into quilts. It is believed that the then recent improvements in the chemistry of ink recipes encouraged quilt makers to sign their names to blocks, and these blocks were then incorporated into quilts. The quilts were often made for and presented to friends or family leaving the community. Many were made as presentation quilts by church members to honor a favorite pastor at the time of his leaving the church. Still others were made as wedding gifts for a favorite couple.
Album quilts were made in three styles, in a variety of pieced blocks, appliqué blocks or a combination of appliqué and pieced blocks. Often the blocks were original designs and this was especially true of the appliqué designs. It is believed that these album quilts were one of the primary sources for the myriad of patterns quilt makers used later in the 19th Century and on into the 20th. Century.
Friendship quilt stamped with the names of the makers. c1850 PA
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The same stamp is used for every block, only the names are changed out.
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Friendship Quilt block with the name written in by hand.
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Another block from the same Friendship quilt c1850.
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Chintz fabrics c1840 make up this quilt. Large blocks of unpieced fabrics are sewn together to make the top.
The block quilt.
During this period the quilt constructed in a block to block format, using a number of uniformly sized blocks, rather than a whole cloth or medallion style method of construction, became the most popular style of quilt construction. Piecing quilts by making small blocks is easier and more mobile than working on large quilt sized works, and it is believed that this is the reason for the style’s popularity and longevity, and it is still the most popular style today.
During the early 1800’s pieced quilt block patterns were usually simple designs, becoming more complex as quilt makers became more experienced in designing and constructing more complex patterns. Block sizes ranged from small 1 inch pieced blocks to 18 or 24 inch blocks. The quilts using the smallest blocks were popular after the 1860’s, when there seemed to be a fad for piecing quilts using the smallest pieces. Small postage stamp sized fabric pieces were stitched together into blocks or arranged into overall designs that covered the quilt top.
Mosaic Quilts.
The term, mosaic quilt, refers to those quilts composed of small patches laid out in an overall pattern to form designs. Most often made from hexagons or diamonds, these quilt tops were complex designs of rosettes (made from hexagons) or star and tumbling block formations (made from diamonds). Some quilts contain hexagons cut of chintz and calico, which number in the thousands, measuring as small as 3/8”. Designs were most original, with the quilt maker piecing together hexagons in the shapes of rosettes and diamonds, all coming together in a complex overall composition. Many are made with the old preference for a center emphasis, and start in the center of the quilt and build out to the edges.
A popular mosaic quilt is the quilt whose entire design is made from small diamond shaped patches. These diamonds were often assembled into the shape of large stars or sunbursts that are the size of the quilt top, and they are among the most dramatic and graphic quilts from this period. Sometimes secondary designs were added to corners or borders, with appliqué floral blocks or borders.
The term, mosaic quilt, refers to those quilts composed of small patches laid out in an overall pattern to form designs. Most often made from hexagons or diamonds, these quilt tops were complex designs of rosettes (made from hexagons) or star and tumbling block formations (made from diamonds). Some quilts contain hexagons cut of chintz and calico, which number in the thousands, measuring as small as 3/8”. Designs were most original, with the quilt maker piecing together hexagons in the shapes of rosettes and diamonds, all coming together in a complex overall composition. Many are made with the old preference for a center emphasis, and start in the center of the quilt and build out to the edges.
A popular mosaic quilt is the quilt whose entire design is made from small diamond shaped patches. These diamonds were often assembled into the shape of large stars or sunbursts that are the size of the quilt top, and they are among the most dramatic and graphic quilts from this period. Sometimes secondary designs were added to corners or borders, with appliqué floral blocks or borders.
Mosaic quilt made from a large assortment of fabrics c1830.
Close-up of the Mosaic quilt.
The Four Block Quilt
The Four block quilt is made from four large blocks, sometimes measuring as large as 30”- 36” square. Usually done in floral appliqué designs, but often incorporating a design like the Prince’s Feather or the American Eagle. Perhaps the oddest of these patterns is the Prince’s Feather. It is an odd arrangement of 8 large feather’s growing out of a center shape and usually done in red and green fabrics. The most striking of these four block quilts is the quilt made of four eagles, one in each quadrant, often carrying patriotic symbols in their beaks or claws. The four block quilt was becoming more popular towards the end of the period and would be continue to be made for the next 50 years.
Double pink fabrics are used in this Four Block quilt.
Later in the 19th Century.
There were quilt styles that had their beginnings in the last decades of the Century. Some were variations on the earlier styles others were distinctly new.
Foundation Pieced quilts
The following three quilt styles were usually foundation pieced quilts, although occasionally quilts are found that were pieced without a foundation. Foundation pieced quilts are made by sewing down fabric to a base fabric, allowing scraps of fabrics to be used and sewn into blocks.
There were quilt styles that had their beginnings in the last decades of the Century. Some were variations on the earlier styles others were distinctly new.
Foundation Pieced quilts
The following three quilt styles were usually foundation pieced quilts, although occasionally quilts are found that were pieced without a foundation. Foundation pieced quilts are made by sewing down fabric to a base fabric, allowing scraps of fabrics to be used and sewn into blocks.
String quilts
String quilts are made by stitching scraps of fabric down onto a foundation fabric. The foundation fabric is completely covered, essentially creating a new fabric. Blocks or portions of blocks are then cut from this newly created fabric. Sometimes they are obviously string quilts, in that they are made from strips of cloth, too narrow to be of any other use. Other times they take on a crazy quilt look with scraps of various lengths and widths.
String quilts are made by stitching scraps of fabric down onto a foundation fabric. The foundation fabric is completely covered, essentially creating a new fabric. Blocks or portions of blocks are then cut from this newly created fabric. Sometimes they are obviously string quilts, in that they are made from strips of cloth, too narrow to be of any other use. Other times they take on a crazy quilt look with scraps of various lengths and widths.
String quilt c1890 made of thousand of small pieces, or strings, of fabrics from the later half of the 19th C. Diamond shape blocks are sewn together into the quilt top.
Crazy Quilts
Crazy quilts are distinctive and quite a different type of quilt. They are made of various scraps of fabrics, mostly silks, in satins, brocades and velvets, and they are often embellished with ribbons, laces and appliqué pieces. They are also often heavily embellished with embroidery, beadwork, and hand painted floral designs. Construction varies from the usual foundation quilt in that the odd shaped fabric pieces are assembled in a collage over the quilt top or block, with edges overlapping and the uppermost patches appliqued down. Occasionally a cotton crazy quilt is seen, where scraps of fabrics in a myriad of cotton prints are used to cover the quilt top.
Small crazy quilt c1880. Lots of embroidery embellishes this quilt.
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Small sized doll quilt c1880 made from bright and pastel colored fabrics, and this is also nicely embroidered. Fabric and lace ruffled border.
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Log Cabin type quilts
Log cabin quilts are made from uniformly sized strips of fabrics sewn into various geometric designed blocks. The strips are usually sewn onto a foundation fabric, and the blocks are again arranged in secondary designs over the quilt top. At other times the strips are pieced together forming the blocks. Log cabin quilts are one of the most popular quilt styles of the period because they are constructed of small narrow pieces of scrap fabrics into graphic designs, some with a very modernistic look.
Log Cabin crib quilt c1880.
It was these basic quilt designs and their variations that were embraced by the 19th. Century quilt maker. Some quilt styles were more popular than others, and quilt making traditions varied in different locations. These basic styles of quilt construction, were to become the basis of quilt style design, and were to be used for the next two hundred years, and are still used today by 21st. Century quilt makers. These quilt makers relied on patterns passed on from family members, or shared with friends, and as we see from the innovative quilts of the period, they often used their own creativity to produce wonderful one of a kind quilts.
The majority of quilts from the first several decades of this period were made before quilt patterns were widely published in periodicals or offered for sale by pattern manufacturers.
At the end of the 19th. Century the block to block quilt had become the most popular style of quilt, as it still is today. The articles and advertisements in the magazines and periodicals of the period, provided hundreds of patterns, both new and old for quilt makers.
This article attempts to describe the basic quilt styles of the 19th. Century, but it is non-inclusive. Early quilts tended to be unique, and one of a kind. It would be impossible to catalog all the original quilts made by the numerous artistic, talented, and innovative quilt makers of this exciting period in quilt making.
Friendship Album Sampler quilt c1890. Blocks from different states are signed by their makers.
Last Note:
Making Reproduction quilts
We are very fortunate that fabric manufacturers have made available a wide variety of new reproduction fabrics representing antique fabrics and faithfully documenting fabrics used in 19th. Century quilts. Made available to today’s quilters through the efforts of manufacturers, fabric historians, and quilt collectors, who are doing an amazing job of documenting many of the fabrics that were available here in the United States in the 1800’s.
Dozens of lines of these reproduction fabrics have been manufactured with the quilt maker in mind and are sold through quilt shops. Most of these fabrics are labeled with the period or year they were made or in use, making it easier for quilt makers to match up the fabric to the quilt they are trying to reproduce.
Laurette Carroll
Quilt historian, quilt collector, and quilt maker and designer from California.
Quilts used in this article are from the collection of Laurette Carroll.
Photos are by Laurette Carroll.
Copyright 2005, December 19, 2015
