Quilt
PeriodCirca 1870 - 1877
Place MadeMarlboro, New Jersey, U.S.A.
MediumSilk, velvet
Dimensions76 × 64.5 in. (193 × 163.8 cm)
ClassificationsQuilts and Coverlets
Credit LineGift of Miss Eleanor P. Rue, 1934
Object number720
DescriptionA "Log Cabin" quilt hand-pieced of various brightly-colored silks, each block having a black velvet center. The backing fabric is a blue silk brocade. There is no batting used, and the top and backing layers are tied rather than stitch quilted. The front is brought to the back as a binding.Curatorial RemarksLog Cabin quilts first made their appearance in the early 1860s. The name may have been influenced by Abraham Lincoln, whose childhood growing up in a small log cabin was an important part of his presidential campaign. The pattern was highly popular not only for the variety of pattern variations but for the practicality in the use of small scraps of fabrics. Eleanor Perrine Rue chose a number of dress weight silks for her quilt. Log cabin quilts of this type provide fascinating glimpses into the wild range of fabrics available to women in the 1860s for their gowns. The quilt also includes black velvet center squares.NotesThis elegant and colorful Log Cabin quilt was made by Monmouth County resident Eleanor Perrine Rue. Records indicate that she created this silk quilt for her granddaughter and namesake, Eleanor Perrine Rue. One of five children of Matthew Perrine (1766 - 1824) and Hannah Morford (1771 - 1849), Eleanor was born on Christmas Day in 1800. In 1822, she married Joseph I. Rue (1794 - 1861). Rue was a successful farmer, with real esate valued at $20,000 in the 1850 Federal Census. Eleanor and Joseph Rue had seven children. Eleanor's quilt was eventually donated by her granddaughter Eleanor Perrine Rue (1857 - 1948) in 1934.
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