Skip to main content
Advanced Search
Sampler 2018-154
Sampler by Lucretia Ann Abbott
Sampler 2018-154

Sampler by Lucretia Ann Abbott

DateJuly 28, 1829
Maker Lucretia Ann Abbott (1818 - 1891)
OriginAmerica, Michigan, Detroit
MediumSilk embroidery threads on a linen ground of 28 x 28 threads per inch (fiber identification by eye)
DimensionsSampler: OH: 16 1/2" x OW: 17 1/2" Framed: OH: 20 3/8" x OW: 21 3/8"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number2018-154
DescriptionThis is a framed square needlework sampler worked in shades of green, gold, brown, ivory, blue, and black silk embroidery threads on a natural color linen ground of 28 x 28 threads per inch. The top portion of the sampler consists of a verse, Greek key and wave bands, heart motifs, and the signature line: “Lucretia Abbott 12 years of age/Detroit July 28 1829.” The center section contains a vine cartouche enclosing the inscription: “At Miss/BondY/School” flanked by “Quaker” baskets of fruit. The bottom portion of the sampler contains a grassy hillock embellished with flowers with a centrally placed bush and large bird. Symmetrically placed are butterflies, birds, flowers, little dogs, and figures of a man. The top and sides of the sampler are enclosed in an undulating floral and vine border.

Stitches: cross (over two)
Label TextLucretia Ann Abbott made this sampler in Detroit in 1829. It is exceptional for the fact that it was made by a girl who lived in the Territory of Michigan before it was a state, when it was extremely rural and had only 25,000 people. Lucretia Ann's family was one of the first families of Detroit, and therefore this sampler is an important relic of early Detroit life.
Inscribed"When we devote our Youth to go/d tis pleasing in his eYes A flow/er when offerd in the bud is no/vain sacrifice"
"Lucretia Abbott 12 Years of age/Detroit July 28 1829"
"At Miss BondY School"
MarkingsNone
ProvenanceLucretia Ann Abbott (January 22nd, 1818-March 3rd, 1891) was born on January 22nd, 1818 in Detroit, Michigan. She was the daughter of Robert Abbott (1771-1853) and Elizabeth Rebecca Audrain (c. 1784-1858). Her father was a merchant of Irish descent who had an established presence in Detroit by the Revolutionary War and who became the first Auditor General in Michigan Territory in 1834. He married Elizabeth in Detroit in 1798 and the pair had ten children. Lucretia Ann was the ninth of these ten children. Elizabeth was born in Pennsylvania and was of French descent. Her family moved to Detroit shortly after her birth.

Lucretia Ann was a student at Miss Bondy's school in Detroit in 1828. Although she was 11 when she created her sampler, she stitched her age as 12. She meant her twelfth year, which means she was 11 years old.

Lucretia Ann married Edward V. Cicotte (1810-1892) and together they had four children, three girls and one boy. She spent the rest of her life in Detroit and died in 1891. She is buried with her family in Mount Elliot cemetery in Detroit.