June 7, 1987
By Susan J. Dehler
Vigo County Historical Society
Sewing formed threads of friendship
In the 19th century, women of leisure joined sewing circles to raise funds for charity or formed decorative arts societies to produce fancy needlework and embroidery to adorn their homes. More than any other domestic art, sewing brought women with a social network which took them outside the isolation of their own homes.
One fashionable woman recalls that she would leave home at 11 in the morning to sew with seven other ladies much like herself. They would stitch together for some hours, “talking of Liberian missions, handsome young ministers, who wore what to church . . . until three in the afternoon.”
Although women outside the leisure class had less time to get together, much sewing was done within the family circle which stimulated companionship among female members. Outside the family, quilting parties were held as an important social activity among women.
The quilt on display in the Victorian bedroom in the museum is a good example of the crazy patchwork design which was popular in the late-19th century.
Made from colorful scraps of silk, velvet, the quilt contains an odd assortment of political figures appliqued in oriental dress with hand-drawn faces. To accent the political theme, campaign ribbons are sewn into the quilt: “Cleveland/Hendricks--Victor” and “Daniel Voorhees, Re-Elected Senator from Indiana.”
A “Good Luck” horseshoe in royal purple with a garland of flowers decorates the top center area of the piece.
The quilt measures 64 inches by 61 inches. It is trimmed in red faggoting, and backed with black and white checkered satin. Yellow feather stitching outlines each colorful front patch.
One quilting book published in 1885 describes the crazy quilt as follows: “Crazy Patchwork has now become so popular as to require that little instruction. As the name indicates, it is simply sewing odd scraps and bits of Silk, Satin, Plush, Pieces from the cast-off neck-wear of gentlemen friends, old ribbons, samples of friends’ dresses, etc. (of which any size or shape can be used), in a ‘haphazard’ sort of way, so that the angles may somewhat imitate the craze or crackle of old china, from which all this kind of work derives its name.”
The quilt on display in the museum comes from the estate of Judge Randolph H. Wedding, who came to Indiana in 1817 and served as an associate judge in Terre Haute for many years.
The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.