Quilt No.980NGA - National Gallery of Australia

" Members of the Hampson family, who lived at 'Fern Bank' near Westbury in northern Tasmania, made this quilt. John and Mary Hampson settled in the area in 1865 and had seven children. As the dates on the quilt show it was made between 1901-1903, Mary and five daughters and two sons were living at Fern Bank at this time, so work could be carried out by any of the family members.
In 1948 the elder of the two sons, John, died and as the other male William was disabled, he and his unmarried sisters moved to Westbury. It does not appear that any of the Hampson family produced offspring. William was the last surviving member of the Hampson family, and during his last years he was cared for by his next door neighbour Mary Gray. William died in 1955, leaving the house to the Church of England, and some land and possessions to Mary Gray: including the quilt. Mary had a very small house and as there was nowhere to hang the quilt it was given to the Fitzpatrick sisters (Genevieve and Myra) to hang in their Fitzpatrick Inn in Westbury. The quilt was purchased in 1990 for the National Gallery of Australia with the generous assistance of funds from the National Gallery's Australian Textile Fund." [NGA]