Schoolhouse quilt

ca. 1900–1920

Not on view

The first decades of the twentieth century saw a renewed interest in quiltmaking. This resurgence was influenced by both the nostalgia of the Colonial Revival, and after 1929, by the advent of the Great Depression, when making a quilt from leftover scraps of fabric seemed a particularly appealing act of thriftiness. A design that is still made today, the schoolhouse pattern first became popular in the 1890s, in the wake of remembrances of the disappearing one-room “little red schoolhouse”. This particular example is likely from between 1900 and 1920, and includes fine detailing in the chain-stitch embroidered mullions on the windows and doors of each schoolhouse.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Title: Schoolhouse quilt
Date: ca. 1900–1920
Geography: Made in Pennsylvania, United States
Culture: American
Medium: Cotton
Dimensions: 72 × 85 in. (182.9 × 215.9 cm)
Credit Line: Purchase, Mr. and Mrs. William Mitchell Jennings Jr. Gift, 2014
Object Number: 2014.620
Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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