Art Institute of Chicago

Friendship Quilt

Made for Ella Maria Deacon (American, 1811–94)

Date: 1842
Medium: Appliquéd and pieced quilt; dyed and printed plain weave cotton fabrics; ink inscriptions
Culture: Mount Holly
Department: Textiles
Institution: Art Institute of Chicago

Inscribed with names and verses, the eighty-five unique squares of this quilt bear signs of friendship and community. Made in an era when communication and travel required significant time and effort, the quilt may have served as a farewell gift on the eve of the recipient's marriage and ensuing move. In one square, an M. C. Coles simply wrote Remember me. In another, Martha Buzby composed a short poem: Oft in tender recollection / Call to mind thine absent friend / Cherish for her that affection / Which I trust will never end. These clever, succinctly rendered compositions add a metaphorical layer of coziness to the quilt and allowed Deacon to keep those dear always near.

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