Quilt

Artist/Maker
Hayes, Sarah Willis
Place Made
Warren County North Carolina United States of America
Date Made
1800-1810
Medium
cotton
Dimensions
LOA 91 3/8; WOA 85
Accession Number
2669
Description
MAKER: Sarah Willis (1753-1824) was born in Brunswick County, Virginia, to John (1719-1766 ) and Mildred (Smith) Willis (1719-1769) of Beddingfield Hall Plantation. Sarah married Hugh Hayes (1745-1814) of Gloucester County, Virginia, on March 26, 1773. Four years later, Hayes bought 448 acres of land in present-day Warren County, North Carolina, and by 1780, Hugh and Sarah had moved to North Carolina.

The copperplate materials used in this piece date to the late eighteenth century. The block print used in the border dates to the early nineteenth century.

According to Colleen Callahan, Curator of Textiles at The Valentine Museum in Richmond, Virginia, the layout used on this quilt (the diamond within a square) was a favorite choice for early patchwork bedcovers originating in Eastern Virginia and North Carolina in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Callahan has stated that “with its artistic arrangement of block-printed and copperplate-printed textiles, this coverlet is a particularly elegant version of this regional style.”

DESCRIPTION: White ground with applique of copperplate-printed pattern in blues and reds; central motif of birds on foliage is set within a diamond which is set within a square; the diamond and the square have the same block printed fabric border; overall border is appliqued with copperplate-plate print. Appliques applied with reverse button-hole stitch in silk thread (colors used include ivory, pale pink, and gold); edges of appliqued pieces are not folded under; Borders do not have mitred corners. border depths are as follows:
bottom 15 1/2″; top 16 3/8; left side 12″; right side 12″.

The center piece (not including border) is 53 7/8″ to 55 3/8″ high and 55 5/8″ to 56 3/8″ wide.

History
Credit Line
Given by Mrs. Elmo D. Sparks, in memory of Elizabeth Barnwell