History of quilting

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Mrs. Bill Stagg of Pie Town, New Mexico with her patchwork and embroidery quilt that displays all the United
States state flowers and birds, October 1940.

The history of quilting, the stitching together of layers of padding and fabric, may date
back as far as 3400 BCE.[1] For much of its history, quilting was primarily a practical
technique to provide physical protection and insulation. However, decorative elements
were often also present, and many quilts are now primarily art pieces.

Contents

 1Europe
 2Russia
 3United Kingdom (and colonial Australia)
 4United States
o 4.1Wholecloth quilts
o 4.2Broderie perse quilts
o 4.3Medallion quilts
o 4.4Mid-19th century
o 4.5Civil War era
 4.5.1Abolition and the role of quilts
 4.5.2For the troops
o 4.6Victorian era America
 o 4.7Amish quilting
o 4.8Crazy quilting fad
o 4.9Traditional quilt survival
o 4.10Contemporary quilts
 5See also
 6References
 7Further reading
o 7.1Primary sources
o 7.2Books
o 7.3Articles
 8External links

Europe[edit]

Whole-cloth quilt, 18th century, Netherlands. Textile made in India.

In Europe, quilting appears to have been introduced by Crusaders in the 12th century
(Colby 1971) in the form of the aketon or gambeson, a quilted garment worn under
armour which later developed into the doublet, which remained an essential part of
fashionable men's clothing for 300 years until the early 1600s.
One of the earliest existing decorative works is the Tristan Quilt, made around 1360 in
Sicily.[2] It is one of the earliest surviving quilts in the world and at least two sections
survive, located at the V&A Museum (London) and in Bargello palace (Florence).
Another of the Tristan and Isolde story is held in a private collection.

Russia[edit]
The oldest surviving example of a quilted piece is a linen carpet found in
a Mongolian cave, dated to between 100 BCE and 200 CE. It is now kept at the Saint
Petersburg department of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Archaeology Section.[3]

United Kingdom (and colonial Australia)[edit]

The National Gallery of Australia has a 3-by-3-metre (9.8 by 9.8 ft) quilt known as
the Rajah Quilt. It was created by about 30 convict women as they were transported
from Woolwich, England to Hobart, Tasmania in 1841. The quilt was rediscovered in
Scotland in 1989. It is a medallion quilt with Broderie perse at its centre.[4]
United States[edit]
Quilt making was common in the late 17th century and early years of the 18th century.
Colonial quilts were not made of leftover scraps or worn clothing as a humble
bedcovering during this period but were decorative items that displayed the
fine needlework of the maker, such as the Baltimore album quilts. Only the wealthy had
the leisure time for quilt making, so such quilting was done by only a few. Commercial
blankets or woven coverlets were a more economical bedcovering for most people.
Whole cloth quilts, broderie perse and medallion quilts were the styles of quilts made
during the early 19th century, but from 1840 onward the use of piecework and blocks,
often made from printed fabric, became much more common.
Quilting is now a popular hobby, with an estimated base of twenty-one million quilters. [5]
Wholecloth quilts[edit]
Early wholecloth bed quilts which may appear to be a solid piece of fabric are actually
composed of strips of fabric, since early looms could not produce widths of cloth large
enough to cover an entire bed surface. Early quilts that feature the same fabric for the
entire quilt top, whether that top is made of dyed wool or pieces of (the same) printed
cotton fabric, are referred to as wholecloth quilts. Early wholecloth quilts have three
layers: a quilt top, a filling (in early quilts the filler was often wool), and a backing. The
three layers are held together via quilting stitches worked by hand, in an age before
sewing machines were marketed. In wholecloth quilts, the quilting stitches themselves
serve as the only decoration. The earliest whole cloth quilts found in America were
brought from Europe. Initially, quilts were owned by the wealthy in America who had the
means to purchase imported quilts.
The collection of the Lovely Lane Museum in Baltimore, Maryland contains a quilt
believed to have been carried onshore by the Cogswell family who embarked from
Bristol, England en route to Bristol, Maine in 1635. Once the passengers were safely on
shore, the galleon "Angel Gabriel", moored in Pemaquid Bay, was completely destroyed
when the Great Colonial Hurricane of 1635 rushed up the coast from Naragansett,
Rhode Island, leaving the ship as just a mass of floating debris after it was hit with the
strongest winds ever recorded.[6]
The Canton Historical Society in Canton, Massachusetts believes that a wholecloth quilt
in their collection may be the oldest wholecloth quilt made in America. The wool
wholecloth quilt was made in 1786 by Martha Crafts Howard. [7][8]
The Buckingham Quilt surfaced in 2014. It was made by the wife of Reverend Thomas
Buckingham, one of the founders of Yale University, and passed down through nine
generations. It is among the oldest wholecloth quilts made in America (circa 1660s). [9]
A more complete survey is needed to compare all of the wholecloth quilts held in the
many museum locations who have collected such textiles. Many early quilts did not
survive the test of time or were discarded, or if they survived, the name of the quilter
was lost to history. For a time, the trend in wholecloth quilting was a preference for all-
cotton white quilts.
Many of the beautiful surviving wholecloth quilts feature feather designs, outlines of
flowers, or are based on other designs taken from nature motifs. Some were made even
more exquisite by the use of stuffed and corded quilting, a method sometimes
called trapunto. Trapunto is an Italian word used to describe the technique of slipping
extra stuffing into certain areas of a quilt to create areas of raised motifs that stand in
relief. For example, stuffing placed inside the quilted outline of a feather or flower makes
the design stands out. Women were sometimes proud of their finely wrought and evenly
spaced quilting stitches in their wholecloth quilts. This type of quilting seems to be
experiencing a revival today and some quilt stores sell pre-marked quilt tops ready to be
layered and quilted, either by hand or by machine.
Broderie perse quilts[edit]
Broderie perse refers to the technique of cutting motifs from printed fabric
and appliquéing them onto a solid background. This form of quilt making has been done
since the 18th century. The popular printed fabric during this period was chintz imported
from India.
Printed fabric was expensive even for those who were well off. By cutting out birds,
flowers and other motifs from printed fabric and sewing them onto a large homespun
cloth, a beautiful bedspread could be made. The technique was also used on some
early medallion quilts as in the example.
Broderie perse bedcoverings were usually used on the best bed or sometimes only
when guests were staying in the home.
Medallion quilts[edit]

Example of a medallion quilt with applique.

Elizabeth Welsh. Medallion Quilt, c. 1830. Cotton. Brooklyn Museum

Medallion quilts are made around a center. The center was sometimes a solid piece of
large-scale fabric like a toile or a Tree of Life, an appliqued motif or a large pieced star
or other pieced pattern. The central area was surrounded by two or more borders.
Although some borders were solid, many were pieced or appliqued.
Mid-19th century[edit]
Changes came about as progress in technology deeply affected the number and styles
of quilts made during the middle years of the 19th century.
The Industrial Revolution brought about the most dramatic change as textiles came to
be manufactured on a broad scale. This meant women no longer had to spend time
spinning and weaving to provide fabric for their family's needs. By the 1840s the textile
industry had grown to the point that commercial fabrics were affordable to almost every
family. As a result, quilt making became widespread.
A great variety of cotton prints could be bought to make clothing and even specifically
for making a quilt. Although scraps left over from dressmaking and other sewing
projects were used in quilt making, it is a myth that quilts were always made from
scraps and worn-out clothing. Examining pictures of quilts found in museums we quickly
see that many quilts were made with fabric bought specifically for that quilt.
Another major shift was in the style of quilts made. Although a few earlier quilts were
made in the block style, quilts made up of blocks were uncommon until around the
1840s. With so many fabrics being manufactured quilters could create their blocks with
a delightful variety of fabrics.
Some block style quilts were made of a set of identical pieced blocks while others
contained a variety of blocks made with different patterns. The blocks were sewn
together and a border may or may not have been added.
During this period the invention and availability of the sewing machine contributed to
quilt making. In 1856, the Singer company started an installment plan so that more
families could afford a sewing machine. By the 1870s, many households owned a
sewing machine.
This affected quilt making in two ways. First of all, women could make clothing for their
family in much less time, which left more time for quilt making. Secondly, they could use
their sewing machines to make all or part of their quilts. The sewing machine was
usually used to piece quilts, but occasionally the quilting itself was done with the sewing
machine.