Quilt, Appliquéd Whig Rose

Date1840-1850

Maker Sarah Robinson (1772 - 1859)

Maker Harriet Robinson Barbour (1810 - 1901)

OriginAmerica, Indiana

MediumCotton face, lining and padding

DimensionsW: 93 1/2" x L: 94 1/2" (237 x 240 cm)

Credit LineGift of Misses Louise & Violet Barbour

Object number1965-224

DescriptionThis is a square quilt appliqued with a floral design of rows of full-blown roses, in shades of pink with large yellow centers, each with eight rosebuds that alternate with rows of eight-pointed stars, creating a variation of the Whig Rose pattern. Each of the roses has been pieced in eight sections, each section itself pieced three times in shades of pink. The bright-yellow center is appliqued, as are the stars. The appliqued border features deep swags with serrated edges that terminate on two sides with hyacinths and on the other two sides with a different flower. The quilt is bound with a plain cotton strip on the bias and backed in plain white cotton. It is quilted in 9 running stitches per inch in patterns of large squares and medallions of flowers, in addition to outline.
Label TextRows of full-blown roses, in shades of pink with large yellow centers, each with eight rosebuds, alternate with rows of eight-pointed stars to create a charming variation of the Whig Rose pattern in this quilt. The Whigs, an American political party formed in 1834, is believed to be the source of the name of the appliquéd design. Although by 1856 the party had been succeeded by the Republican Party, the Whig Rose pattern remained popular throughout the second half of the nineteenth century.
The donors’ history states that this quilt was made by Sarah and Harriet Robinson. Harriet was the daughter of Thomas and Sarah Robinson, who were born in Maryland and by 1840 were living in Indiana. Thomas and Sarah’s son John Larne Robinson was elected to the Thirtieth, Thirty-First, and Thirty-Second Congresses (March 1847–March 1853). Perhaps the political implication of the pattern’s name appealed to the mother’s and daughter’s pride in their family’s political involvement. The quilt descended to Harriet’s two spinster granddaughters, Blanche Louise Barbour (1882–1971) and Anna Violet Barbour (1884–1968), who were both distinguished citizens in their own right.

ProvenanceThe donors' history states that this quilt and quilt 1965-223 were made by two sisters, Harriett and Sarah Robinson, whose grandfather was John Robinson, speaker of the House of Burgesses in Williamsburg. Research revealed, however, that Harriet was actually the daughter of Thomas and Sarah Robinson, who were born in Maryland and by 1840 were living in Indiana. The quilt descended to Harriet’s two spinster granddaughters, Blanche Louise Barbour (1882-1971) and Anna Violet Barbour (1884-1968), both distinguished citizens, who donated the quilt to the museum.