Quilt, Appliqued Iris from kit

Date1935-1936

OriginAmerica, Mississippi, Claiborne County

MediumCotton, wool batting (by microscope)

Dimensions79 1/2 inches wide X 91 1/2 inches high

Credit LineGift of The Children of Elizabeth Shaifer Hollingsworth - Allison Shaifer Hollingsworth Moxey, Ann Davidson Hollingsworth Weeden and Christopher Alton Hollingsworth, and The Children of Sanfrid Davidson Shaifer - Mary Laura Shaifer Bell, Jodie Stovall Shaifer Huddleston and Sanfrid Davidson Shaifer, Jr.

Object number2025.609.13

DescriptionRectangular quilt made from a kit, appliqued with lavender and pink iris flowers and two shades of green stems and leaves on off-white ground. The center medallion has four sprays of iris plants, each with three flowers and two buds, growing from a center point. The border on all four sides has individual Iris plants growing inward from scalloped edges bound with green bias binding. The bed cover is quilted in four to five running stitches per inch in a pattern of cross-hatching in the center and borders with circles enclosing four-petal flowers and boxes with X and circle quilting inside. Medium woolen batting, somewhat matted and uneven, and off-white cotton backing.Label TextThis quilt is part of a large donation of quilts by the Shaifer family of Claiborne County, MS. These 46 quilts were made by women from four successive generations of the family, dating from the mid-1800s to the 1980s.

By the early 20th century, patterns and kits were increasingly available for quilters. Dorothy Davidson Shaifer (1908-2005), assisted by her mother and sister-in-law, worked this quilt from a pattern designed by Anne Orr and advertised in her quilting article in the January 1933 issue of Good Housekeeping. Anne Champe Orr, a lifelong resident of Nashville, Tennessee, was known for her cross-stitch, embroidery, crochet, knitting, rugmaking, lacemaking, and quilting patterns.Provenanceca. 1935, Dorothy Davidson (Mrs. Sanfrid) Shaifer [1908-2005], assisted by Elizabeth Wheeless (Mrs. Percy) Shaifer [1866-1953] and Laura Percy Shaifer [1892-1983] (Claiborne County, MS); dates unknown, descended in family to Elizabeth Shaifer (Mrs. Al) Hollingsworth [1933-2016] (Claiborne County, MS); 2025 gift of the Shaifer Children via Al Hollingsworth to Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA)