A Quilt Mystery
In March 2025, I was visited by a quilt owner who had a quilt in need of repair. Nothing unusual about that, right?
Two Quilts: A Mystery Quilt & Clues
When he and his mother visited with this family heirloom, they actually brought two quilts.
One, the customer stated, was a teaser for the main quilt he wanted me to work on.
Obviously, I was intrigued.
He laid out the “teaser” quilt on my design table as he told its story, “My wife and I like antique shops. She loves quilts; I love her. So we have purchased quilts as we travel. This one appealed to us because of the stitching. Even with the damage, she loved it and wanted it.”
This quilt was a beautiful (I think all quilts are beautiful!) pickle dish crazy quilt. The central portion of each block was made in the crazy style, with an assortment of knits, wool, linen, shirting, and silk. It measured 60″ x 72″ and was made of 30 blocks arranged in five rows. Many of the silk and linen fabrics were shattered and in need of repair. I examined the quilt, admired the stitches, and even began outlining my plan for repair.
The owner redirected my attention, saying the “pickle dish quilt” was just a teaser. The one they wanted me to repair was next. The mother and son hastily unwrapped a fabulous, crazy quilt with extensive embroidery stitches and fabrics.
The Mystery Quilt Appears
My jaw dropped!
The quilt was in excellent condition, even with the worn embroidery thread here and there and areas of shattered fabric. I was thrilled to have such a gorgeous piece of art in my studio! Being asked to repair the quilt was exciting and intimidating at the same time. Of interest, the owners wanted me to find out as much history as I could. On a corner of the quilt was a small label with a code. This was the beginning of an adventure in repair and research.
With a little help from the internet, members of the American Quilt Study Group, and a few phone calls, I discovered that the quilt was part of a late 1980s quilt documentation project sponsored by the Museum of Florida History. Through my research, which included a little genealogical research, contacting various museums in Florida, and collaborating with quilt historians, I found some amazing facts. First of all, the quilt maker lived in Michigan while making the quilt. Plus, the quilt was made in 1885! This marks the oldest quilt to have come to my studio! Through this documentation, I reported to the owners who the true maker was, which solved several unknowns in the family regarding the quilt’s maker.
Other fascinating finds included in the quilt were the inside silk from a top hat, made from the Lincoln Bennett Top Hat Company in London, England (popular until 1910)! Other interesting finds in the quilt were hand-painted flowers, a cross, a pickaxe, a shoe, several hearts, and an election ribbon (year unknown).
The quilt mystery was a thrill to solve. The third great-granddaughter of the maker was excited to have this information and to learn about the loving repairs to the quilt.
I was thrilled to be a part of the quilt’s history!
Kristen Edens, quilting sleuth, archivist, artisan, and surgeon.