FIVE GENERATIONS OF LOCAL QUILTS

Historical Society Spotlights One Family's Needlework

Photos by Hoag Levins

CAMDEN, N.J. -- The Camden County Historical Society's "Unbroken Chain: Five Generations of Quilts" is an exhibit assembled by the local mother-daughter team of Dorothy Talavera and Emily Talavera Kreifels (above, right). It features a collection of quilts sewn by five generations of the family stretching back to the late 1800s; some were made from feed sack and recycled clothing fabric. Click photos for larger image

The quilts by five generations of women were made as utilitarian objects for routine home use; they are a history of domestic home life across three centuries. Dorothy Talavera's vision was for displays draped over beds and furniture as they would have been used in typical period homes. The exhibit sprawled across the Society's auditorium, inviting visitors to wander through the set pieces. "This was so different and obviously so much more alluring than the usual quilts-hung-up-straight-in-a-row kind of exhibit," said Society Executive Director Linda Gentry. "Some group of visitors stayed here for hours, clustered around displays and discussing the memories they evoked." Gentry and Museum Director Elizabeth Dean created the set pieces with antiques from the Society's extensive collections. Above, left, 1930 "Rose of Sharon" and "Seven Stars" quilts made by Dorothy Talavera's grandmother, Eleanor Sutton. Perhaps the most popular setting was the early 19th-century bed covered with two 1880 quilts made by Talavera's great grandmother, Anna Mary Morris, who lived in Camden. The main cover is a "Grandmother's Pride" pattern and the folded foot covering quilt is a "St. Andrew's Cross" pattern. An early 20th-century setting (above, left) included two living room chairs and a Victor Talking Machine Company hand-cranked Victrola with records. Both chairs are covered in quilts of the "Flying Geese" pattern. Above, right, visitors chat enthusiastically about patterns and techniques at a flat table display of Dorothy Talavera's "Dashin to Court" pattern quilt made in 2002 and (far end, folded) a 1977 "Crazy Quilt" pattern. A collection of quilts turned into a child's playhouse (above, left). Atop the table is a "Log Cabin Straight Furrows" quilt made with reproductions of Civil War-era fabrics. On the floor below, made for a grandson's birthday, is a flannel firefighter-themed quilt with a dalmation-pattern border. Above, right, is a collection of illustrated child's storybook pages executed as a quilt. Dolls, furniture and a child's tea set from the Society's Victorian Parlor complete the scene. A 1940s writing desk vignette (above, left) features a sampler made by Dorothy Talavera's mother, Betty Robbins, whose photo can be seen in the far corner. Above right, a vintage sewing machine is festooned with an unfinished American flag quilt. ~ ~ ~ CCHS is funded, in part, by the New Jersey Historical Commission, the New Jersey Historic Trust and the New Jersey Council for the Humanities. All Rights Reserved, © 2012 HistoricCamdenCounty.com Contact: editor@HistoricCamdenCounty.com About this Web site