Textiles and the Triplett Sisters

I promise we will continue to share our BAQs research, however it seems appropriate to show how some of these research topics related to Philadelphia and the inscribed applique quilts that were appearing in that region in the mid-nineteenth century. Philadelphia was one of the oldest cities in the nation and was in the forefront of pivotal events that shaped our country. Would it prove to be in the forefront of quilting as well? In the instance of businesses selling BAQs in Baltimore, we see pawnbrokers and auction houses advertising selling quilts as early as 1843. (Here is a link to the blog article about businesses selling BAQs) In Philadelphia, we see the sales by pawnbrokers and auction houses advertising quilts as early as 1837…more than 5 years earlier. In his ad, G. W. Smith, a...

Although we are still gathering photos for our Pinterest page to help us learn more about the Baltimore Album Quilts, it has become apparent that there are quilts with matching borders. In fact, I’ve identified five groups with five or more quilts in the group. Several of the borders are very distinctive, complicated borders that would be difficult and require a lot of time to do one side, let alone four sides. Is this a sign of a professional quilter, a workshop, a church group of ladies working together or simply a pattern being replicated? Does it mean the professional quilter made the whole quilt, or just added borders to a friendship quilt made at a quilting frolic? The rose border, (which has sometimes been credited to Mary Evans because of the style of rose) matches...

As we continue to explore the makers and sellers of BAQs, besides dressmakers and seamstresses, milliners were another group to explore. We already noted Mary Chase ran ads in the newspaper for selling "album squares." (Here is the link to read more.) Which made us wonder if there were other milliners that made and/or sold BAQs? Miss Ruth Sanks was a milliner located at 47 Baltimore Street in Baltimore, Maryland. Baltimore was originally known as Market Street and was a main drag for businesses in Baltimore. She also came to my attention because Mrs. Susan Brice's maiden name was also Sanks. So far, we haven't found a relationship between the two women. (Here is the link to read more about the Brice Workshop.) Ruth Sanks was listed as a milliner in several Baltimore Business directories during...

Studying all these Northern Chintz Style Quilts with signatures and presentation info got us thinking about how and when the craze started. We see the proliferation of signatures on the Baltimore album quilts and even in the deep South too. So, it wasn’t associated with just one area or region. The earliest known autograph album was created in 1466, but it would take until 1507 before the “album amicorum” or book of friends to really be established. In the mid 16th century it was fashionable and became common throughout Europe in the 17th century. In the United States, 1820s are usually the time cited of popularity. So, what inspired the writing on quilts? The commonly availability of commercial Indelible ink. Ink was used on textiles earlier, but it may well be that earlier quilts had signatures...

I recently attended a lecture given by Barbara Brackman at the MOKA Quilt study group on the links between Kentucky and Missouri quilts. Shortly after, I attended an exhibition curated by Leah Zieber and Arlene Stevens at the Pasadena Museum of History which featured a group of quilts made of fancy goods (silk, satin, and velvet.) It was wonderful to see the actual textiles, to see in person some of the lessons learned from Brackman’s and others’ research. Fancy Goods Quilts can be made in a typical pattern such as log cabin or in a disorganized collection of shapes known as a crazy quilt. Crazy quilts frequently have embroidered details, which some have commented, the quilter went crazy with all the embroidered designs. However, that may not have been the case. Instead, she may have simply...