Click, swipe or drag the image, or use the buttons, to zoom and exploreTap the image and use the buttons to zoom and explore
Pieced and Stuffed Medallion Quilt
Made by Ludwell Harrison Goosley (1754-1813) and her daughters
105.5 in. W x 94 in. L
8-9 stitches per inch
Gift of the Massanutten Chapter (Virginia) Honoring Marian M. Duncan, NSDAR President General (1962-65)
62.194
Conservation adopted by Carroll Campbell Strickland, Huntsville Chapter, AL
York County, Virginia and possibly Greenbrier County, Virginia (now West Virginia)
A bold and elegant design using large-scale prints in large pieces creates an almost architectural effect. Or perhaps it recalls floor tile designs in high-style houses of the elite such as Ludwell Harrison’s family, who had several large plantations on the James River.
Ludwell Harrison Goosley and her daughters made this quilt. In the 1810 census, Goosley was widowed and lived with five daughters in York County. The household also included seventeen enslaved servants, some of whom may have worked on the quilt, too.
Family history records that Susan, the youngest daughter, later added the last two borders. Perhaps this was done shortly before Susan’s 1827 marriage in Greenbrier County.
Block- and roller-printed cottons; printed cotton backing; cotton filling, stuffing, and binding
The brown, tan, yellow and black palette known as “drab style” was popular at the turn of the 19th century. The yellow dye may be quercitron, newly developed in the 1780s and widely appreciated for its vivid shades.
