Quilt
PeriodJune 1857
Place MadeMillstone, New Jersey, U.S.A.
MediumCotton
Dimensions93 × 93 in. (236.2 × 236.2 cm)
InscribedOn the back of the quilt, an inked inscription reads: "Presented to / Phoebe E. Combs / by her Friends / Through the kind suggestions and assistance of / Mrs. C. F. Worrell / June 1857."
SignedThe quilt includes 81 individual names. The following, identified by row, read from left to right. Row 1: Mrs. J. C. Robbins; J. B. Robbins; John Nelson Rue; Aunt Ruth Reid Thomas A. Slack, Aunt Fanny Mount, Mon Cher Alsop (?) Osborn, Mr. Charles Allen, Joseph McChesney. Row 2: Morrison Robbins, Mrs. Nancy Robbins, Letitia P. Thorn, Mrs. J. M. Lewis, Eliza J. Rue, Mr. J. M. Lewis/Elder, Rebecca A. Thorn, S. Elizabeth Allen, Mrs. H. W. Allen. Row 3: J. Augustus Nelson/Princeton; Clarmont Thorn; To Sister/From/Joseph C. Combs; Aunt Amanda Dey; Cornelia Bergen; Charles S. Jewell. Row 4: Margaret R. Cook/True Friendship/Middletown; Mrs. Lydia C. Rue; Johnny? H., Mrs. Samuel Edwards, Anne M. Worrell, Mrs. J. Hutchinson,, Mrs. Polly E. Perrine, Matthew Perrine, C. A. Jewell. Row 5: James M. Dougan, Mrs. Anston Rue, Joseph K. Davison, Henry M. Worrell, Rev. C. F. Worrell/From Your Pastor, Mrs. M. P. Worrell/Pastor's Wife, Lizzie Rowland, Johnny Perrine, Julius Spencer/St. Louis, Mo. Row 6: Carrie Cook/The First Leaf, Achsah Lucas, Joseph W. Perrine, Mr. J. Hendrickson/Elder, Mrs. Euphemia Worrell, Mr. Samuel Edwards/Elder, Johnny Van Dorn, Mr. Ephraim P. Emson, Lydia C. Mount. Row 7: Ellie B. Johnson, Mrs. S. A. Thorn, My Mother/Aunt J. Combs/Pa., My Father/&/Uncle G. Combs/Phila., R[achel] Lorton Combs/Pa./Mary Lavinia Combs/To Sister, Mrs. Cornelia Davison, Mrs. G. W. Davison, H. Virginia Bergen, Phoebe E. Day. Row 8: Mr. E. J. Chamberlin, Ellen J. Chamberlin, Alexander L. Thorn, Elizabeth D. Stout, Mrs. Ellen J. Perrine, Mrs. T. M. Perrine, Mrs. Leah E. Smith, Mrs. Samuel McIntyre, Ellie B. Johnson. Row 9: Mrs. Ezekiel Chamberlin, Joseph K. Chamberlin, Carrie T. Nelson, Mrs. Amanda Irwin, Mrs. Meribah R. Slack, Aunt Polly Johnson, Rev. W. L. Mitchell, W A L L A C E, Mrs. McIntyre.
ClassificationsQuilts and Coverlets
Credit LineGift of Anna C. Erickson, 1945
Object number2074
DescriptionA large square quilt, consisting of 81 individual blocks containing pairs of curved appliqued leaves in various red cotton calicos, with crossed stems. The arrangement of the leaves form an ovoid central space to accomodate 81 individual inked signatures. Many of the signatures appear to be written by the same hand, while a number are clearly inscribed by the individuals named. Many include identifiers, titles, or other additions such as "Carrie Cook / First Leaf," "Samuel Edwards, Elder," "Rev. C. F. Worrell, From Your Pastor," and "Mrs. M. P. Worrell, Pastor's Wife." The quilt includes a thin batting, possibly cotton, and a plain bleached cotton muslin backing. The blocks are arranged in sets of four, creating a four-lobed panel, with the ninth row down the right side of the quilt consisting of half-lobes. A narrow 1/4 inch plain red cotton binding edges all four sides of the quilt.Curatorial RemarksIn June of 1857, Millstone resident Phoebe Elizabeth Combs was presented with a red and white quilt. As Phoebe married Thomas Spencer Ogden on September 17, 1857, it is clear that the quilt was created as a wedding gift for the couple. The true nature of the creation of the quilt was more, however, than a simple present for a soon-to-be bride. Less than three weeks after her marriage, Phoebe joined her husband to sail to Equatorial Guinea on the west coast of Africa to begin their lives together as Presbyterian missionaries. This quilt, carefully packed in their trunks, sailed with them, a memento of Phoebe's family, friends, and relatives in and around Monmouth County. Among the names on the quilt are several which stand out. Caroline "Carrie" Cook (1835-1904) may have been the one to start the loving project, as she inscribed her block as "The First Leaf." The Cook family lived in Middletown, so it is likely that the two girls met and befriended one another at school. The Freehold Young Ladies Seminary was regionally known as a fine girls' school, and it is possible that both girls attended, although there are gaps in the school student list in the 1850s and neither girl's name appears in surviving documents. There were any number of other girls' schools, boarding schools, and day schools where they might have met. Many in the congregation of the Millstone Presbyterian Church are represented in the quilt, including Reverend Charles Flavell Morrell and his wife Maria. Maria Morrell apparrently helped organize the quilt and helped Carrie Cook with the project. One can imagine the gathering at which the quilt was presented to Phoebe. The Presbyterian Church, particularly the Synod of New Jersey, established a mission on Corisco Island in Equatorial Guinea beginning in 1850. Guinea was under the control of both the Spanish and the French, with Spanish being the majority power. Spanish was decreed the national language in 1844, although the indigenous residents spoke several African languages and dialects including Bantu. The Ogdens boarded a boat on October 6, 1857, and arrived three months later on January 14, 1858. They settled at the main Presbyterian mission in Evangasimba on the west coast of Corisco Island. The mission had two other smaller settlements in Ugobi and Elongo also on the island. The first decade was challenging, with sickness and accidents taking a toll on early missionaries and their families. Thomas Spencer Ogden fell ill in June of 1859 and again in March of 1860, dying on May 12, 1861. Phoebe's family and friends clearly knew that she would depart to Africa after marrying Reverend Ogden, and so began work on the quilt that would accompany her on her voyage.NotesPhoebe Elizabeth Combs was born on January 13, 1836 in Millstone Township to Lewis L. Combs (1802-1870) and Ann Reid Combs (1806-1882). Phoebe had three surviving siblings including Catharine (1843-1923), Mary Lavinia (1845-1919), and Sarah (1846-1927). A brother, Lewis L.,, was born in 1837 and died the following year. Lewis Combs was a successful farmer and a staunch teetotaler, supporting the temperance movement. The family attended the Millstone Presbyterian Church, a small congregation that was apparently rejuvinated when Reverend Charles Flavell Worrell arrived. Phoebe married Reverend Thomas Spencer Ogden on September 17, 1857. Three weeks later, on October 6, 1857, Phoebe and Thomas sailed for Equatorial Guinea in Africa to join the Presbyterian Missionary congregation there. The couple arrived on January 14, 1858. They settled at the Corisco Island Mission That same year, Phoebe gave birth to a baby, perhaps stillborn, recorded only as "infant Osborn." The first ten years of the mission were hard, with accidents and illness claiming several of the missionaries' lives. Reverend Ogden "entered his work with ardor," but fell ill first in June of 1859, then again in March of 1860. He translated the Gospel of Luke into Benga, a Bantu language spoken by many of the indigenous peoples of the island. Equatorial Guinea was under the control of Spain, and in 1844 Spanish was declared the official language of the country. Ogden chose to translate Luke into the regional - but officially unrecognized - language of his congregation. He also preached and taught. Reverend Ogden died on May 12, 1861 and was buried on Corisco Island. Phoebe, pregnant with their second child, apparently remained at Corisco for a time, giving birth to her son Thomas Spencer Ogden in 1862. By 1865, Phoebe had returned to New Jersey. The 1865 New Jersey state census listed Phoebe and Thomas living with her parents. The 1870 Federal Census lists her and eight-year-old Thomas still part of her parents' household. But Phoebe apparently returned to Africa to work as a missionary, spending decades there. A 1908 newspaper article in the Monmouth Inquirer noted that "Mrs. Phoebe C. Ogden, who has been engaged in mission work on the west coast of Africa for 50 years, gave an interesting account of the work there." Phoebe Elizabeth Combs Ogden died on February 14, 1911, of a serious brain injury after falling down the steps in her Philadelphia home. She was buried at Brainerd Cemetery in Cranbury, Middlesex County, New Jersey.
Collections
ProvenanceCaroline "Carrie" Cook (1835-1904), Maria Campbell Perrine Worrell (1805-1881) and others to Phoebe Elizabeth Combs Ogden (1836-1911) to her sister Sarah M. Combs Reid (1846-1927) to her daughter Anna C. Reid Errickson (1865-1959)
