Social Media Lessons
This quilt was donated last year. The donor suggested the quilt was from the 1850s, but we, as museum professionals, must always check the facts. During my observation and study of the quilt, I pointed out several key attributes that would dispute and complement the claim of the 1850’s date. First off, a scrap quilt, while a vast genre of quilt piecing, is extremely common for rural areas such as the Great Smokies where resources are scarce. This quilt is parallel with this area's homestead behavior, as a wide variety of textile scraps are utilized. Even the lack of binding on this quilt, which requires long strips of fabric to accomplish, suggests the lack of resources available when making this quilt. Another feature that supports the claimed date is the backing of the quilt, as paisley fabric was popularized and produced in the US in the early 1800’s.
To narrow it down further, we can also look at the printing method of this fabric, which is made easier by looking through the imperfections of this quilt to see the backside of this printed fabric. As we can see, there are no colored threads on the back of the fabric, meaning this print was printed on the front. This method of printing is not as stiff as a screen-printing technique but a mass printing technique that was brought about during the Industrial Revolution in the mid-1800s. One of the textiles on the top of the quilt did pique my interest, however, as it has a strong luster on its surface, leading me to believe it may be synthetic; therefore, collapsing the claimed 1850 date. Luckily, through an imperfection in one of the synthetic pieces, I was able to access the seam allowance of the piece and snip a small amount of fibers to conduct a burn test. By burning the fabric, we’ll be able to identify the fiber content and treatments of the material in question. After conducting my burn test, I concluded this textile was mercerized cotton; a method of adding durability to cotton fabric after it’s been woven by adding a layer of caustic soda to the surface of the textile. This method of treatment was patented in the year 1850 and would have been readily available to consumers in the 1860’s.
Another feature that suggests this quilt is from the 1860’s or later is the method of construction. While this quilt is hand quilted, it is machine pieced and top stitched. This can be identified by the uniform stitches we see here on the edge of the quilt. Sewing machines were not commercially available for consumers until the 1860s, leading me to conclude that this quilt can be dated between the 1860’s and 1900’s.
Below are the two videos shot by our social media team where I verbally and visually conduct this formal evaluation of this artifact.
