In a message dated 6/12/2005 2:03:38 PM Mountain Daylight Time,
bhorne(a)juno.com writes:
As I read the names and dates (which covered Jan 1841-Jun 1842), I
wondered if this may have been a wedding present. It would have taken
some time to collect all the signatures from a wide area and time to make
the quilt. Perhaps Susanna and husband were going to move westward (from
PA) and it was a going away present or perhaps both.
Barbara Horne
Hi Barbara;
Thank you for your gracious response to my post. Yes, a wedding is one
avenue that I will be exploring. I have studied historic textiles for over 20
some years, with a specialty in signed pieces, and there were many reasons
signature quilts were made. During the period between about 1840 and 1860, this
type of quilt was a 'fad', much like memory books of the same time. It will
be great fun finding out if this lovely quilt has a deeper meaning. I will
ask the museum if they will allow me to post the story somewhere when I have
finished. Standard protocol.
Thanks again and keep in touch,
Jan