Elizabeth Roseberry Mitchell’s Graveyard Quilt – Zoom Program

When

Join us on Tuesday, January 28 at 7pm EST to hear Jennifer Downs, curator at the Kentucky Historical Society, share a Zoom program related to the history of a remarkable textile. Her presentation will be within the context of 19th century Kentucky and Victorian mourning customs.

An extraordinary mourning quilt in the Kentucky Historical Society’s collection, made by Elizabeth Roseberry Mitchell around 1843, is widely known as the “Graveyard Quilt.” Mitchell, who moved with her family from Pennsylvania to Kentucky in 1840, designed and created this quilt with the assistance of her daughters to memorialize the deaths of her beloved family members.

Both a striking work of art and a traceable family tree, this quilt is characterized by an overall pattern of alternating eight-point stars and brown calico blocks surrounding a cemetery bordered by a picket fence, trellis, and climbing roses. Most unusual for mourning quilts of this period is the presence of coffins, both in the cemetery and around the perimeter of the quilt. She also incorporated additional coffins, with the intent of adding the names of new family members as they arrived. Jennifer Downs’ program will be within the context of 19th century Kentucky and Victorian mourning customs.

Marie Bell, owner of Country Treasures Quilt Shop in Brockport, is sponsoring this virtual event. Reservations are needed to receive a Zoom link, which will be forwarded to registrants the day before this event. Your sliding scale donations are greatly appreciated using PayPal or a credit card on our registration page. Need assistance or have questions? Send email to Sue Bonafini at volunteers@cobblestonemuseum.org or call 585-589-9013.