Quilt Top

PeriodCirca 1930-1950

Place MadeKeyport area, New Jersey, U.S.A.

MediumCotton

Dimensions69 × 44.5 in. (175.3 × 113 cm)

Classifications(not assigned)

Credit LineGift of Elizabeth Errickson Walling, 2009

Object number2025.507

DescriptionAn unifnished quilt top in the Butterfly pattern, five by eight blocks straight set with no sashing, with single large appliqued butterflies on plain white cotton ground, in a variety of cotton solids and prints in hues of pale and bubblegum pinks, yellows, sherbet orange, light and medium blues, and several shades of green. Each butterfly applique is highlighted by bold black cotton embroidery floss in simple chain stitch.
Curatorial RemarksWomen's magazines and local newspapers often featured simple quilt patterns, including full-sized applique outlines of Sunbonnet Sue, Dresden Fan wedges, and Butterfly. This unfinished quilt relies on a single simple applique motif - the butterfly - and bold blends of charming, cheerful solid and printed cottons. The black embroidery, deliniating the butterflies' wings and antenna, provide an additional visual impact.NotesDonor Elizabeth M. Errickson Walling (1932-2019) was a lifelong Keyport resident. Mrs. Walling worked as a teacher in the East Keyport School for more than forty years. Her father, Edward Errickson (1902-1993) was a Raritan Bay fisherman. Her mother, Theresa "Tressa" C. Shin Errickson, made most of the clothes for her daughters Betty Jane and Elizabeth. Elizabeth Walling noted that the quilts she donated to the Historical Association were all made by a Keyport neighbor, but did not recall the name. Several of the quilts in the donation were embroidered with the initials "D. G." Research is ongoing to identify this unknown but extremely talented Keyport quiltmaker. According to Mrs. Walling, the quiltmaker was an elderly neighbor who had been quilting for many years.

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