Quilt No.508JR - Name withheld

Name withheld
Owner: 
Name withheld
Location: 
Tasmania
Made in
Unknown
Patterms
Patchwork, Mosaic, Military
Date: 
1851 - 1880
Description: 
Quilt top in postage stamp pattern typical of military quilts. 5 x 5 blocks each 280 x 280mm. Colours are predominantly red, black and cream. Thought to have been made using uniform material from the Crimean war
1350 x 1350mm
History: 

The quilt was left to the present owner by Miss Willis, a friend. A note was pinned to it "This rug was made by wounded soldiers from the Crimean war who, being destitute, cut up their uniforms and made them into rugs which were sold to benefit the men." Miss Willis died in 1977 in Burnie Tasmania.

Story: 

The present owner's family lived close to Miss Willis for many years. She had only one brother who died long before her and no children. The owner writes: "She was a very clever woman with a huge variety of craft-work. I was an only child and when I was a little girl she made me the most beautiful doll's clothes and blankets and sheets for my doll's cradle, frilled pillowslips with lemon bows and later she made me a huge wardrobe of clothes for my teenage doll collection. They are so beautiful and detailed. She was a very clever needle-worker. She was also a keen gardener with a great knowledge of plants. She was also a very talented painter. We have 5 of her paintings framed now. They were painted in the 1920s. When I was little Miss Willis wrote me several short stories and illustrated them and made them into books for me. They featured my pet cat and her pet cat.
Miss Willis' great, great grandfather settled in Van Diemans Land in the 1820s with his family and built a fine Georgian home near Campbelltown. I have absolutely no idea from which side of her family the quilt came from, but recently I read in a Tasmanian history book that when called upon to help financially after the Crimean war, Tasmanians responded very well - so maybe it was then that the quilt arrived in the family - however if this is the case it doesn't answer why it has never been lined and padded. (It is the top only.)." [Quilt owner 4.3.1997]

Related Quilts:

Annette Gero,
Quilt No.842AG - Annette Gero,
Wholecloth quilt originally covered with cretonne and recovered with orange satin. Machine quilted. Padding of wool.
1270 x 1160mm
Patchwork, Pieced Random, Wholecloth, Utilitarian, Typically Australian
Elsie Shephard
Quilt No.720ES - Elsie Shephard
Double sided patchwork quilt/rug. Mainly squares machined together in strips (8 across). Average square 22 to 24cms. One side has a large piece of dark grey woollen material. The materials for the squares include tweed, mohair,many woollens, tartans and cream blanketing all of which were scraps or from used clothing.
1820 x 1680mm
Patchwork, Mosaic, Square
National Trust of Australia (WA)
Quilt No.949NTW - National Trust of Australia (WA)
Frame quilt of dress cottons, including some glazed cottons. The centre is 4 triangles pieced to make a rectangle. This is surrounded by a plain border, a border of triangles, plain border, triangles border, plain border, border of triangles pieced to form squares, square and triangle border, then rows of squares. The outer border is of glazed floral chintz with a brown background. The backing is cream linen pieced lengthways in 3 sections. There is no padding. It is quilted all over in a large clamshell pattern. The top is covered with netting.
2615 x 2280mm
Patchwork, Frame
National Trust of Australia (VIC)
Quilt No.684NTV - National Trust of Australia (VIC)
Double sided patchwork quilt. One side has a centre of pieced hexagons enclosed by borders of plain strips and pieced stars and squares. The other side has a printed Royal Coat of Arms (lion and unicorn) 'Honi Soit Qui Mal y Pense, Dieu Et Mon Droit', surrounded by wide borders of plain and printed materials in the style of frame quilts.
2400 x 2300mm
Patchwork, Frame
Arapiles Historical Society Museum
Quilt No.183AHS - Arapiles Historical Society Museum
Patchwork quilt, reversible, with log cabin blocks on one side, with central red square in each block. Colours predominantly light greys, browns and pastels, and dark grey and blue. Reverse side is made of squares constructed from 2 triangles, in black, patterned pastels, pale blue and dark red. There is a black border along 2 edges on this side. It is quilted.
2058 x 1829mm
Patchwork, Pieced Repeat Block, Log Cabin, Pieced Random
Lora Busellato
Quilt No.1012LB - Lora Busellato
Machine pieced cotton quilt, in random design of geometric pieces. Materials used are cotton sheeting, dress fabrics, broderie anglaise, and seersucker. There is no padding, and backing is white curtain lining.
1540 x 1150 mm.
Patchwork, Pieced Random