Appliqué Quilt

History

This quilt was one of eight made in Ohio USA by Amanda Graham (1889-1978) during her lifetime. They were put in the care of her daughter-in-law Catherine Graham until 1978 when the eight quilts were divided amongst the grandchildren. This one was brought to Australia by Amanda Graham's youngest granddaughter Sharon Graham. Sharon arrived in Australia in 1972, completed her University study at ANU and married 6th generation Australian Thomas Llewellyn Stacy of 'Camelot' Tumut NSW. They have two children, Joanna and Marcus and Marcus, the great grandson of Amanda, will inherit this quilt at an appropriate time. It is still used occasionally. "The maker of the quilt was Amanda Goehring (1889-1978), daughter of German immigrants to Pennsylvania, USA. She and her family were commonly referred to as Pennsylvania Dutch due to the unpopularity of her German descent of the time. She married Stanley P Graham, a Scot by ancestry and a veterinarian by training at Ohio State University. Stanley was sent to France during the Great War, leaving Amanda with one son. Stanley returned to Amanda after the war with an illness he never recovered from and died eight years later. Amanda raised her only son, Laverne Pershing Graham, through work as a seamstress and minding a dry goods store with her sister in Ohio. Her son married and had four children and followed in his fathers footsteps graduating from Ohio State University as a veterinarian. Amanda made two quilts for each grandchild (a total of eight) over her lifetime. The quilts are her legacy divided between the four children."
[Sharon Stacy, Tumut NSW, 20 October 1998]

Description

Wholecloth quilt of white cotton with hand appliquéd flowers in three shades of red. The centre of the quilt has six separate flowers radiating from a circle and each corner has a separate arrangement of flowers. The white cotton quilting is in diagonal lines and a daisy pattern. There is a narrow red border widely scalloped. The backing is white cotton. There is no padding.
2236 x 1905mm