Reposted from the J. Willard Marriott Library Blog.

People from around the world have practiced the art of quilting for centuries, and the pioneers who came to Utah certainly earned their stripes in this endeavor. Not only did they come to Utah toting treasured quilts, but they also prolifically made them once they settled here.   

Utah’s history of quilting points to a rich collection of early American folk art. Today, quilting remains a practiced art in Utah, with many quilters belonging to the Utah Quilt Guild, founded in 1977.

To create a record of the quilts being made, the guild volunteers organized “documentation days” where people throughout the state photographed their quilts. These quilt photographs and accompanying data—ranging from the 1880s to the 1950s—have been contributed to Special Collections at the Marriott Library and are included in the Digital Library. The collection description can be found in the finding aid Utah Quilt Heritage Photograph Collection.

“One of the neat things about the collection is that each quilt photograph is accompanied by a data sheet that lists details about the quilt, such as dimensions, how the quilt was sewn, the types of fabrics used and how all of the pieces came together,” explained Virginia Lee, past guild president. “You also find little tidbits peppered here and there that paint the picture of the quilter and their way of life.”

In addition to the quilt creator, the current owner is listed. Many of the quilts and their creators go back to the early 19th century. Mary Magdalene Garn was one such quilter. She arrived in Utah in 1855 and settled in the Centerville area. Her husband passed just four years after they arrived, and Mary was left with eight children to raise and a farm to run.

Garn’s great-granddaughter, Jean Mabey Barker, contributed an image of a coverlet made by Garn to the archive along with a brief life history for her great-grandmother.

 “Upstairs in the old adobe house was an old spinning wheel and wool card that Mary Magdalene carded and spun wool,” Baker wrote. “Some of this wool she wove into the coverlet, to make the coverlet, she bought banks of cotton thread and used the white cotton as a warp and the red and blue as a filler. She was the mother of 12 children. She died Aug. 24, 1915, at the age of 94.”

Individuals who have a quilt they’d like documented in the collection can use this form.

Schedule a time to see the collection here.

“The fact that the quilts and their creators are preserved in Special Collections is wonderful because it means that anyone at any time can learn about the quilts and the heritage around them. It’s like stepping back in time,” Lee said.

Do you have a quilt to add to the archive? Use this form to submit your materials to the collection.