Quilts & Coverlets
The custom of saving scraps of fabric and stitching them together into something useful has been practiced for centuries in many parts of the world. Many quilts took a lifetime to make but most were made out of necessity to keep families warm in the long winter nights. Patchwork quilts are associated almost exclusively with women; they gave months and years to their making. Many would not have thought of their patchwork as art, however beautiful the quilts that emerged from this simple but time consuming household task. This section will tell you about some of the patchwork quilts in the Ulster American Folk Park’s collection.
Patchwork, Log cabin quilts
The log cabin pattern was popular both in Ulster and North America. It was sometimes called the folded quilt in Ireland but earned the name log cabin because it resembled the style of house built in America using logs. When fabric was scarce, as it would have been for early emigrants, the log cab...
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Crazy Patchwork Quilts
Crazy quilts are so-called because of their random stitching together of odd bits of cloth. They grew out of necessity, at a time when every piece of fabric was valuable and nothing was wasted. The crazy quilt grew from its humble beginnings and was adopted by Victorian ladies. With ample time on...
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McKernan family patchwork quilts
This collection of six patchwork quilts belonged to the McKernan family, from the townland of Freughmore, Seskinore, County Tyrone. Frank McQuade found them in the roofspace of his grandmother’s house at Freughmore in 2001. He remembers them being used for shakedown beds when he visited his...
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Knitted Coverlet
This white cotton coverlet is knitted in squares in a leaf design. It was knitted by Rebecca Suitor, who was born in Ireland in 1866 (pictured below). According to family tradition, she knitted this coverlet between 1902 and 1905.
Rebecca’s husband, John Suitor, was a farmer by profession....
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Woven Coverlets
The production of handwoven coverlets went into decline before the American Civil War (1861-1865), when factory-made blankets became available. Read on to discover the stories behind some of the American woven coverlets in the museum’s collection (get closer by clicking the coverlets).Pictu...
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Ask an Expert
If you would like further information about this collection you may contact the
curator by following this link and
completing the short form.