antique American patriotic quilt
“The Union Star”: A Rare and Important Quilt
Elizabeth Holmes, Probably Loudoun County, Virginia
1869
Pieced, appliqued and stuffed work cotton quilt
71” x 90”, mounted for display
Provenance: Kinnaman and Ramaekers, Bridgehampton, NY; Kelter-Malce Antiques, New York City; Collection of Bill and Maggie Pearson; America Hurrah, New York City; Private New York Collection
Literature: Hedges, Ferrero and Silber, Hearts and Hands: Women, Quilts, and American Society (1996), fig. 10; Harding, Stars and Stripes: Patriotic Motifs in American Folk Art (2002), pp. 124-125; William Beebe (2016), Intimate Parallels: The Art, History, and Activism of Civil War-Era Women’s Quilt Art, Master’s Thesis, Harvard Extension School.
This early and historic antique American patriotic quilt features 39 stars, an American flag with dove, and the inscription “Abraham. Lincoln. Grant. PR [President] Colfax VI [Vice-President] & The Union Forever 1869/ This Quilt was Made 1869 By Elizabeth Holmes in Her 68th Year” – the stuffed work hands signifying the maker.
Elizabeth Rogers Holmes (1800-1873) was a Quaker and member of the Goose Creek Friends Meeting in Lincoln, Loudoun County, Virginia.