How Can I Find Out More About My Quilt (Date, Pattern, etc.)?

You may get help from an expert in the field. Many quilt shops have owners or workers knowledgeable about quilt dating and patterns who might be able to tell you roughly when your quilt was made. To see if there is a quilt store in your area, look up Quilts in the yellow pages.

Major quilt shows, held around the country, sometimes offer appraisal booths, where for a fee, quilt experts look at your quilt and tell you approximate date and will identify the pattern. It's like "Antique Roadshows," but just for quilts. Or, if you live near a museum with a textile department, call them and ask whether they offer appraisal days.

You can do some detective work on your own thanks to the book Clues in the Calico, by quilt historian Barbara Brackman. If you can't find the books mentioned here, ask your local library to borrow them through inter-library loan. Brackman's book shows how to date heirloom quilts by checking five characteristics--fabric, style, color, technique and pattern.

Another helpful resource for quilt dates is the book Dating Fabrics: A Color Guide 1800-1960, by Eileen Trestain. Trestain's book illustrates over 1,000 color fabric swatches. You can match the fabrics in the quilt to those in the book to get an idea of the time period in which your quilt was made.

If the quilt is made with mostly straight lines, it's likely a pieced quilt. You can identify the block pattern (and find possible names for the block) by using another book by Barbara Brackman titled, The Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns.

Prepared by Penny McMorris, quilt historian and author, 8/00.

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