A New (Old) Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt, Part 2: A Post-Quaker Quilt and a Story of Hidden Gold

There are so many ways to look at quilts. Most people first notice size, patterns, colors, fabrics, construction, quality, materials, etc. When the quilts also contain inscriptions, they offer a path to exploring additional perspectives on the lives and times of the people whose names are inscribed. 

In the case of the "Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt," we might most accurately describe it as a post-Quaker quilt, since the people whose names were inscribed on it were no longer active members of the Religious Society of Friends at the time the quilt was made. Looking more closely at their lives and the lives of their families, however, leads to some illuminating details of mid-nineteenth-century Quaker practices, as well as a fascinating story of hidden gold.

"Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt," 1853. Courtesy of the 

Warren Heritage Society / Laura Virginia Hale Archives, Front Royal, Virginia.

As we learned in my previous post of July 15, 2026, this splendid 1853 Friendship Quilt was donated to the Warren Heritage Society in Front Royal, Virginia. The pattern, which is known by many other names, was first identified as an, "Apple Pie Ridge Star," by T. Janney Wilson when he was showing a different quilt to his cousin. Mr. Wilson pointed to a corner of what is now known as the Hollingsworth Family Quilt, dated 1858, and declared, "My grandmother called that an, "Apple Pie Ridge Star." 

Hollingsworth Family Quilt, detail, dated 1858. 

Collection of the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society.

Also known as a Snowflake, True Lover's Knot, Kansas Pattern, Lobster Variation and Guadalupe's Dance, the pattern name, "Apple Pie Ridge Star," first appeared in an article for the magazine, Traditional Quilter, in 1998. Since then, I have collected images and data related to over sixty-five quilts that include the pattern. However, up until now, I was aware of just five historical Quaker quilts whose makers were strongly connected to the area of Apple Pie Ridge in Frederick County, Virginia. Those quilts all have overlapping, inscribed identities and the quilts have one or more so-called, "Apple Pie Ridge Star" blocks.

When I learned about this "new" (old) quilt at the Warren Heritage Society, I did not imagine it could be so closely connected to other mid-nineteenth-century quilts made by Friends living and worshipping along the nine-mile stretch of road called, "Apple Pie Ridge."  Luckily, there was some provenance in the Society's files. 

The person who donated the quilt was a great-great-granddaughter of Mary Ann (Shumate) Jacobs (1811-1891). Notes indicated Mary Ann was the original owner of the quilt. It is most likely the quilt was given to her shortly after the her daughter Catherine was born in 1852. It was passed down directly from mother-to-daughter for four generations before it was donated.

The connection to Apple Pie Ridge -- the location from which we get the pattern name, "Apple Pie Ridge Star" -- is through Mary Ann's brother, Tilman, (sometimes spelled, "Tighlman"), Shumate. Tilman was married to quilt-inscribed identity Eliza (Brown) Shumate. The name of Eliza's aunt, Margaret (Brown) Swayne is also inscribed on the quilt: Margaret was married in 1809 in a meetinghouse on Apple Pie Ridge. (See this blog's post of July 15, 2026.)

Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt, detail, block inscribed, "Eliza Shumate."

Collection of Warren Heritage Society / Laura Hale Archives,

Front Royal, Virginia. 

Eliza (Brown) Shumate (1816-1877) was the daughter of William Hunt and Martha Rees Brown. They were members of Hopewell Meeting in Frederick County, Virginia. In 1839, the Meeting was informed that, "Willian H. Brown has given his consent for his daughter Eliza to accomplish her marriage contrary to discipline, and made entertainment on the occasion, and further that he has hired a slave." William already had a spotty history with Friends: he had been disowned in 1818 for refusing to fulfill a contract, but was reinstated by his Quarterly Meeting. He was disowned again in 1839 for the above-stated transgressions.

Eliza Shumate, 69-1626 wfchs, Stewart Bell Jr. Archives, 

Handley Regional Library, Winchester, Virginia.

Eliza herself was officially disowned in 1839 for her contrary-to-discipline marriage. Her husband, Tilman Shumate, died in 1847 and is buried in the Shumate Family Cemetery in Warren County, Virginia. By 1850, Eliza was living with their four children ages five, seven, nine and twelve in Winchester, Virginia. None of her four children ever married. When Eliza died in 1877 that might have been the end of her story if it weren't for an obituary of her daughter, Martha, When she died in 1924, a fascinating glimpse into the life of the family was revealed. 

"GUARD SPINSTER'S GOLD-PACKED HOME
Authorities Protect Fortune Crammed in Nooks and Crannies Before Death.

By the Associated Press.
WINCHESTER, Va., October 22 [1924]

A bonded caretaker guards the residence property here of Miss Martha Shumate, wealthy spinster, who died last week, following the discovery of a hoarded fortune stuffed and crammed in nearly every nook and cranny of the house.

The guard was established when crowds of persons lured by the reports of hidden treasure threatened to overrun the premises. Bank officials today admitted that the rich woman had drawn several thousand dollars from her account recently to distribute in modest bequests among her friends. It also became known that hardly a receptacle in the house has failed to give up money. Clocks, picture frames, covered plates and cracks and crevices poured out old gold and bank notes. Much of the gold coin is said to be of ancient vintage, many pieces from the California mint, coined while the gold rush was at its height, will command premiums.

Last of Old Family

Miss Shumate was the last of her line, a prominent Frederick County family that had conserved riches through a whole century. It appears that she did not complete the work of writing her will for a document has been found in which only one bequest is made, and that for only a small portion of her holdings.

No mention was made of the disposition of enormous bank stock holdings, bank accounts, farms and city property, all of which her bank here, named as administrator, lists among her possessions.

Near and distant cousins will benefit in the Shumate riches after their appraisal by court orders, it was declared."

It is hard not to imagine widow Eliza and her four children hoarding treasure for all of their years, only to have it disbursed by a bank. We don't know which bank but it is interesting to note that Eliza's only son, Tilman Shumate Jr., worked as a cashier at the Shenandoah Valley National Bank up until a few days before his death at the age of thirty-seven, in 1883. One also wonders how many "near and distant cousins" benefitted, and if their descendants know this story.

As far as I can tell, the house where the gold was found is long gone and is now the site of a church. The "last of her line," Martha Shumate, (1843-1924) is buried, as are her mother and siblings, in Mount Hebron Cemetery, Winchester, Virginia. 

If it were not for the name, "Eliza Shumate," being inscribed on a quilt, this tale would have remained as hidden as the family's treasure once was. 

NOTES & SOURCES:

For the first published documentation of the name "Apple Pie Ridge Star," see: Janney Lupton, "Hollingsworth Revisited: A Labor of Love," Traditional Quilter, November 1998.

Quaker Meeting Records, Newspaper Obituaries, U.S. Census Records, Find-a-Grave website, accessed through Ancestry.com.

Handley Regional Library, Stewart Bell Jr. Archives, Winchester, Virginia.

Thank you to the Warren Heritage Society and Lee Meadows, Liz Rishel and Hannah Fletcher-Perez for sharing this quilt with me, and for granting permission to publish.

Thank you also to Cissy Shull and Sherry Jenkins at the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society for years of sharing the Hollingsworth Family Quilt.

 

A "New" (Old) Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt, Part One

“Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt," 1853. Courtesy of the 

Warren Heritage Society / Laura Virginia Hale Archives, Front Royal, Virginia. 

Last month, I received an invitation from Lee Meadows to see a quilt in the collection of the Warren Heritage Society, Front Royal, Virginia. Lee is on the Board of Directors of the Society, and is a quilter herself. She and I spent a pleasant afternoon photographing and examining the quilt. It will be on display in a small pop-up exhibit at the Society July 15 - August 14, 2026, Wednesdays - Saturdays 10 am - 4 pm.

Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt, photographed 5 July 2026 at 

Warren Heritage Society, Front Royal, Virginia.

The quilt's plain blocks alternate with blocks of, "Apple Pie Ridge Stars," which is one of several names by which this pattern is identified. In this case, as you will see, the pattern is justifiably named for the nine-mile stretch of road, Apple Pie Ridge, in Frederick County. The area was heavily populated by Quakers.  

Lee and I counted thirty-two appliqued blocks whipstitched onto the ground. The quilt, which measures approximately 110 inches X 200 inches, has straight-set blocks and all of the applique patterns are placed to appear in the same direction. The fabrics vary. Quilted in diagonal rows and clamshells, its backing is rolled from the back to the front. 

Apple Pie Ridge Star Friendship Quilt, detail.

Not only is this pattern known by other names, it appears in equal numbers on quilts made by Quakers as well as Methodists, Presbyterians, etc. In other words, the pattern is not only called, "Apple Pie Ridge Star," and it is not exclusive to Quakers. However, there are cluster of mid-nineteenth-century quilts with the pattern that were made by members of the same Quaker community. We can't say for certainty what historical quiltmakers called the pattern at the time they were making it, but we know the pattern was shared between Friends who either lived on, or were familiar with, Apple Pie Ridge. I never expected to find another one so closely tied to Quakers in that exact locale. Until now. 

Block inscribed, "Margaret Swayne, 1853," and 

(at the center, bottom), "Ohio."

Several of the blocks have inscriptions but without taking you down all of the research rabbit holes I wandered, I will share what I have learned so far about Margaret Swayne. Luckily, a date and location were included with her inscribed name. 

On 12 April 1809, Margaret Brown (born 1787) married Samuel Swayne (born 1787) under care of Hopewell Meeting in the Ridge Meetinghouse on... Apple Pie Ridge! In 1826, they moved from Virginia to Ohio with their eight (at the time) children. They received certificates of membership in the Stillwater Monthly Meeting, Ohio, on 24 November 1827. Interestingly, on 25 August 1828 Margaret was disowned for "jH" - joining the Hicksites. 

Samuel and Margaret would lose three of their children at the ages of two, three, and thirteen respectively, but six lived to maturity. Margaret died on 26 March 1861 at the age of seventy-four and is buried in Friends Cemetery, Quaker City, Guernsey County, Ohio.

Research is ongoing, but I hope to share more soon. 

NOTES:

Thank you to the Warren Heritage Society and Lee Meadows, Liz Rishel and Hannah Fletcher-Perez for sharing this quilt with me, and for granting permission to publish.

Thank you also to Barbara Garrett for sharing her insights and expertise.

 

The Hutton Lancaster Legacy Quilt

 

The Hutton Lancaster Legacy Quilt, 1846-1847

Collection of Mary Holton Robare.

Photograph by Kay Butler.

It has been awhile since a post was made to this blog site, but my interest in historical quilts and the people who made them is still strong. Today's post will introduce you to the Hutton Lancaster Legacy Quilt, a Signature Album Quilt dated 1846-1847. I am thrilled that Kay Butler and Kelly Kout made a (now sold-out) kit of its block patterns and I recently had the pleasure of presenting a lecture to one of the groups to which they belong, the Heartland Quilters of the Eastern Shore. With many people now making their own versions of this old quilt, and fresh research being conducted, I hope you will enjoy learning about the original inspiration for some of today's quilters.

I initially purchased the Hutton Lancaster Lagacy Quilt due to its so-called "Apple Pie Ridge Star" block pattern. You can see this in the top row, third from the left. I have studied this pattern for many years and as former readers of this blog are aware, it is also known by many different names. You can read more about that here: January 19, 2019 post

The overall dimensions of the Hutton Lancaster Legacy Quilt are 100 X 104 inches. It has thirty-six blocks measuring 12.75 X 12.75 inches. The width of its border is approximately 12 inches wide. Its binding was done by rolling the backing fabric to the front and it is quilted with wreaths, tulips and outline quilting. It has numerous, still-decipherable inscribed names, and is dated 1846 and June 17, 1847. There is one stamped inscription; the rest are written by various hands, in ink.

Hutton's Lancaster Legacy Quilt, detail.

Block inscribed, "Elizabeth Gregg, June 17, 1847.

When I bought it, the only information concerning this quilt's history was that it was previously owned by a resident of Kentucky, USA, who was a descendant of the maker. She reported that, "Grandma's quilt had been found in a trunk accompanied by a newspaper from Cambridge, England," and that it was wrapped up in a package with a strand of red hair. I have yet to find any connection to Cambridge and I wish we could have conducted DNA analysis on that long-lost strand of hair! Nonetheless, due to the quilt's many signatures and dates, and with research assistance from Glorian Sipman, we were able to learn a great deal more about it. We even found a "Quaker Connection."

At least nine of the names on the quilt represent members of the Benjamin and Susannah Miller Hutton family. They, and almost all of the other signatories, were residents of Drumore and Peach Bottom, which are now both part of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. 

In 1816, Benjamin, who was a farmer, married Susannah Miller 'out-of-meeting.' Although this usually resulted in disownment, according to minutes of the Little Britain Monthly Meeting the committee assigned to Benjamin recorded that his "disposition was favourable." On the 11th month 9th day of 1816, Benjamin acknowledged, "[...] being educated among Friends, have so far deviated from their established order, as to keep company with and marry a Woman not in membership, by the assistance of a Baptist teacher, [...] desiring Friends to continue me under their care, hoping in future my conduct may render me worthy of such indulgence." The Meeting agreed to retain his membership until 1835, when he was removed for non-attendance, but after the first four of his and Susannah's nine children were born.

Page from a book of minutes from the Little Britain Monthly Meeting 

showing dealings with Benjamin Hutton.

Some of the other identities of the quilt's inscribed names were also found in records of the Religious Society of Friends. Others were affiliated with Presbyterians and Methodist Episcopalians. 

Hutton Lancaster Legacy Quilt, detail.

Block inscription interpreted as, "Nancy A. McCullough, June 17, 1847."

I plan to share more about this quilt in future posts. In the meantime, during whatever holidays you celebrate this year I wish all of you the best, with hopes for happy, peaceful days ahead. 

 

Sister Quilts: The Hannah Hoopes Quilt & A Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt

Hannah Hoopes Quilt, d. 1844-1845. Photograph courtesy of Laurette Carroll.

Collection of Laurette Carroll.

As we begin a new year (2020!), I am pleased to introduce you to this ‘new” historical quilt. Excitingly, it is directly related to the Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt dated 1844-1849. That quilt, which is owned by Glorian Sipman, was featured in this blog’s previous post of November 25^th, 2019. 

Connections between the Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt and the Hannah Hoopes Quilt, d. 1844-1845, were discovered when Glorian brought her quilt in to show her Southern California quilt study group. Upon seeing the quilt, Laurette Carroll (another member of the group) mentioned that she had a quilt inscribed with the name of the same “London Grove, Pennsylvania” locale. London Grove is home to a Quaker Meeting that was founded in 1714, and that just celebrated its 300-year anniversary.

A Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt, dated 1844-1849. Photograph by Emily Musser. 

Collection of Glorian Sipman,

During the decade I had the pleasure of exchanging research with quilt historian Lynda Salter Chenoweth, we often discussed “sister quilts.” We found them particularly fun to study, since they always provided so much basis for comparison.

We loosely defined them as quilts sharing multiple overlapping inscribed identities, but that was just a starting point. For example, did the same patterns, fabrics, backing, borders and quilting designs appear in two (or more) historical quilts? When one community made several quilts at the same time, what were the differences between them, and why? Our conversations were as wide-ranging as our mutual curiosity, and I feel sure she would have been keenly interested in this post’s “new” historical quilts.

Glorian and Laurette quickly discovered their quilts shared eight of the same inscribed names. To quote a November 25th, 2019 email from Glorian, “What are the odds that 2 related quilts from Pennsylvania would both end up in Southern California?!”

Besides sharing the same basic album block pattern, the quilts do not appear to have identical fabrics. However, they do have nine of the same names inscribed. Most of the inscribed identities were members of the Religious Society of Friends.

The Hannah Hoopes Quilt is so-named because of the following inscription: “Memento, Hannah Hoopes, March 20th, 1844, Philadelphia.” 

Hannah Hoopes Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “Memento, Hannah Hoopes,

March 20^th, 1844, Philadelphia.”

Glorian’s Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt also has a block inscribed with the name, “Hannah Hoopes”:

Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “Hannah Hoopes, 

Philadelphia, December 28, 1845.”

With so many “Hannah Hoopes” appearing in mid-nineteenth-century records, identifying the correct “Hannah” might have been impossible. However, every one of the Hannah Hoopes Quilt’s twenty-three other inscriptions notes a relationship to Hannah, as in, “My Friend,” My Sister,” my brother-in-law,” and even, “My Parents, Benjamin & Kezia Eastburn, Philadelphia, 1844.” (This inscription is a good reminder that sometimes, signature quilts are inscribed in memory of the deceased; Benjamin and Keziah reportedly died in 1806 and 1831, respectively.)

It is interesting to see the style of script used on this quilt. A glance through Kip Sperry’s book, Reading Early American Handwriting, suggests it resembles quite old (seventeenth-century) Legal and Chancery hands. It is also interesting that – although most of the inscribed identities are readily found in Quaker records -- the dates are not written in a Quaker-style. For example, on the block inscribed with the name of Ann Eliza Hoopes, the date is written as, “March 19^th, 1844,” as opposed to 19^th 3^rd mo. 1844. (Quakers avoided naming months because those names derived from Pagan gods.) We ca only speculate, but perhaps the inscriber did not use Quaker-style dates because he or she was not a member of the Religious Society of Friends.

Hannah Hoopes Quilt, detail Block inscribed, “My Granddaughter, Ann Eliza Hoopes, 

Aged 3 years, March 19^th 1844, Philadelphia.

Noting that Ann Eliza was just three years old at the time strongly suggests the inscriptions observed on the Hannah Hoopes Quilt were allographs (names signed by someone for another) vs. autographs. Further proof resides on the block from Hannah to, “My Parents,” since both of her parents were deceased long before her quilt was made.

 Hannah Hoopes Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “My Parents, Benjamin & Kezia Eastburn,

Philadelphia, 1844.”

Searching Quaker records on Ancestry.com, one can find several Quaker Minutes concerning Hannah ’s parents. In 1778, at a Monthly Meeting of Women friends held at the Buckingham Monthly Meeting in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, “the friends appointed to attend the marriage of Benjamin Eastburn & Keziah Ross report they were at the marriage and saw nothing but what was orderly.” 

In 1798, Benjamin and Keziah (who also appears in old records as “Kezia, Kesia, etc.) transferred their Quaker membership from Buckingham Monthly Meeting to the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, along with their six daughters. Hannah was the youngest at the time, but Benjamin and Keziah subsequently had three more children: eight daughters and (their youngest) one son, in total. 

Hannah Eastburn Hoopes, (1796-1878) married Francis Wilkinson Hoopes in 1817. They had three sons, all of whom are named on the quilt, as well as their wives and some of their children.

Their youngest, Joseph Ross Hoopes (1822-1859) is described by a contributor to the Find A Grave website (citing the Hoopes family record, Vol. I, 1979) as a, "Merchant in a drugoods store on 8th and Market St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He also offered the first delivery service in Philadelphia, Pa. for customers." 

As for the Hannah Hoopes Quilt and the Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt being representations of “sister quilts,” research and comparisons could continue for years but charmingly, Hannah actually included blocks dedicated to her sisters, and two of their names – Frances and Rachel -- also appear on the Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt.

Hannah Hoopes Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “My Sister, Frances R. Eastburn, 

Norristown, 1845.”

Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “Frances R. Eastburn, 

Norristown, 1846."

Hannah Hoopes Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, “My Sister, Rachel Kinsey, 

London Grove, Penn, 1845.”

Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt, detail. Block inscribed with the names,

 Samuel and Rachel Kinsey.

                        March 9^th 1844

                        View these few lines

                        And think of us

                        When we are laid in to the dust

                        Samuel Kinsey

                        Rachel Kinsey

In our swiftly-moving world, we might all pause to appreciate the time and efforts it takes to compile remembrances-in-quilts. Then, because as time marches on I once again bring my former co-host, Lynda, into to this blog post with her most oft-uttered written closing, “Ever Onward!”

NOTES:

All photographs in this post are courtesy of Glorian Sipman. All Rights Reserved. Text ©Mary Holton Robare 2020.

Special thanks to Glorian Sipman and Laurette Carroll for so generously sharing their quilts.

Additional thanks to Glorian Sipman for sharing her the extensive research as well as her detailed photographs of both quilts.

To learn more about the collection and studies of Laurette Carroll, visit: https://www.antiquequilthistory.com/ (Retrieved 1 January 2020.)

A Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt

During this week of Thanksgiving in the United States of America, we are grateful to the owner of this mid-nineteenth-century quilt, Glorian Sipman, who kindly agreed to share photographs and her research concerning this lovely fifty-block Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt with readers of this blog. An experienced researcher, Glorian has deciphered the inscriptions on many of the quilt’s forty-five blocks that have names of men and women, verses, dates, and locations written in ink.

Pennsylvania Friendship Quilt, dated 1844-1849. 

Collection of Glorian Sipman. 

Photograph by Emily Musser, courtesy of the owner. 

Interestingly, there is only one inscribed date written in the Quaker style: "12 8th 1843." Members of the Religious Society of Friends used numbers instead of, "...the names of days (Sunday to Saturday) and months (January to August) which derived from pagan gods, substituting numbers." (FHL of Swarthmore)

A Quaker-style date is just one clue used to establish a historical quilt's Quaker provenance. Many of the inscribed surnames are familiar to Quaker researchers, such as, Gillingham, Harlan, Hoopes, Lamborn, etc. Indeed, Glorian Sipman was able to locate many of the signatories in the records of the Green Street Monthly Meeting, the New Garden Monthly Meeting and the Philadelphia Monthly Meeting.

While every quilt block could tell a story, we often look to the center blocks of signature quilts, first, for clues about why they were made. In this case, the center block was dated March 9th, 1844. It was inscribed with  the names of Samuel Kinsey (1777-1854) and his wife, Rachel (Eastburn) Kinsey (1787-1867). Some of the other names on the quilt denote their children. Samuel and Rachel were married in 1809 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. They had seven children. Four of them stayed in Pennsylvania. The other three moved (eventually) to California, New Jersey and Delaware and the youngest Kinsey married a Mennonite. 

The inscription on the quilt's center block includes this verse: 

View these few lines

And think of us

When we are laid in to the dust

As research progresses, we may be able to connect one of quilt's inscriptions to an event, such as a marriage and/or migration. It is important to note that the quilt may have been made and inscribed by people giving it as a gift to people who were not actually named on the quilt. This was not uncommon, and it is not impossible to discern a quilt's intended recipient but it does present challenges. 

In the meantime, we can enjoy looking at the quilt's leaf motifs, vine border and wonderful mid-nineteenth-century fabrics.

Notes:

All photographs in this post are courtesy of Glorian Sipman. All Rights Reserved. Text © Mary Holton Robare 2019.

Special thanks to Glorian Sipman for sharing this quilt, and thank you to my readers for your continuing interest.

For more about Quaker-style dates see, “The Quaker Calendar”  on the Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore website: https://www.swarthmore.edu/friends-historical-library/quaker-calendar. Retrieved 25 November 2019.

The Cather-Robinson Quilt: Priscilla Fenton Tate

One of the great things about researching historical signature album quilts is that even after studying a quilt for years, there is always more to explore. Beyond looking at a quilt’s appearance, condition, construction, patterns, and materials, etc., when we can definitively attach individual makers or signatories to a quilt, we are invited in to examine lives that may not otherwise be remembered. This is especially true if a woman whose name is inscribed on a quilt does not appear in many public records. For this post we will once again be looking more closely at the Cather-Robinson Quilt, d. 1848, and one particular signatory.

Cather-Robinson Quilt, d. 1848. Photograph Courtesy of Ann Romines. 

Collection of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.

One of the blocks of the 1848 Cather-Robinson Quilt has a now-much-faded inscription, “Priscilla Tate.” Priscilla Fenton Tate was born 31 Jan 1803 in Frederick County, Virginia.  She was the fifth of seven children born to Benjamin and Ann (Jackson) Fenton.  The Fentons first child was born in Gainsborough, Frederick County, VA, and their second was born in Fairfax, VA. By the 1799 birth of their third child they were back in Frederick County, VA. Their youngest child, Enoch, was born in 1807 in Goose Creek, Loudoun County, Virginia, in the hometown of Priscilla’s future husband.

Priscilla’s mother, Ann, was born in Virginia in 1773, following her parents’ migration into the state from Pennsylvania sometime between 1766 and 1771.  Priscilla’s father, Benjamin, was also a native Virginian whose parents originally came from Pennsylvania. Benjamin and Ann were both subjected to disownments from their respective congregations for their 4 Apr 1796 marriage.  On the day of his wedding Benjamin was “rpd mcd” (reported married contrary to discipline) by the Goose Creek Meeting. Ann was disowned the same day from Hopewell Monthly Meeting for being married by a hireling teacher (thus going against Quaker wedding practices).

The first mention of their daughter Priscilla in Quaker records occurs during the period of time her parents were disowned. (Despite disownments, it was not unheard of for Friends to attend Quaker ceremonies and Meetings.) In 1815, at the age of twelve, Priscilla signed a Quaker-style wedding certificate when her uncle was married in a public Meeting at Back Creek, Frederick County, Virginia.

Cather-Robinson Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, "Priscilla Tate."

In 1818 at the age of fifteen, Priscilla dated a sampler that she stitched in cross and eyelet stitches, using silk thread on linen. 

Priscilla Fenton's sampler, "Wrought 1818." Photograph by Christine Knoblauch. 
Collection of Barbara Harner Suhay.

On 7 Oct 1823 Priscilla received her certificate of membership to Hopewell.  Her brother John received his one day later.  Their mother Ann was reinstated by Hopewell at the same time. A week later, on 15 October 1823, Priscilla married Willam Tate (1796-1884) of Loudoun County, Virginia. They were married at the Upper Ridge Meetinghouse on Apple Pie Ridge in Frederick County, Virginia, in a ceremony held under the auspices of Hopewell Monthly Meeting. Among those in attendance was Abel Jackson, whose daughter's name is stitched on the center of this block:

Cather-Robinson Quilt, detail. Block inscribed, "Sidney Jackson."

On 8 Jan 1824, Priscilla transferred her membership from Hopewell in Frederick County to her new husband’s Meeting, the Goose Creek Meeting, Loudoun County, VA.

Researching and writing about historical members of the Religious Society of Friends and their quilts, one frequently encounters the topic of their involvement in the Underground Railroad. When telling their stories, it is important to avoid perpetuating the narrative of black dependency on a paternalistic white culture, and the story of Quakers and slavery is complex. Many Friends owned slaves, and even more were opposed to anti-slavery activities, often because they felt it might incite violence and thus violate their tenet of pacifism. Still, there are important tales to be told from the perspective of historical Quaker lives.

William Tate, front and back of carte-de-visite. Photograph courtesy of Barbara Harner Suhay,

Much has been researched and published about William Tate’s involvement in the Underground Railroad. Less direct is evidence concerning his wife Priscilla’s involvement, but there are clues to her stance, as well. Between 1843 and 1862, she traveled extensively with her husband from their home in Virginia to Pennsylvania, Indiana, Iowa New York. While slavery was not abolished in Virginia until 1865, by 1846 all of the Tate’s destinations had abolished slavery and were thus potential havens for those seeking freedom from slavery. 

From a letter dated March 6, 1946, we learn that, “I have a child’s memory of Uncle William, a large white-haired man, and I have been told of his work in the anti-slavery cause. I think he helped several slaves across the Potomac river. I know he drove one in his carriage, dressed in his wife’s Quaker dress and bonnet.” 

In one account of a family's harrowing escape from slavery we discover that, “It was late in the afternoon when they reached the Tate farm. William and Priscilla greeted them warmly and made them feel welcome.” The Paynes stayed with the Tates from November through spring, helping with housework and gardening. (Gandy, 1987, 35-36)

Priscilla died on November 15, 1865.  Her obituary noted that “She was an Elder of Goose Creek Monthly Meeting, and highly valued for her sound judgment, her devout spirit, and her charitable deeds.” She is buried in the Goose Creek Burying Ground, Lincoln, Loudoun County, Virginia.

Notes and Selected Sources:

All text and photographs on this site are by Mary Holton Robare unless otherwise noted. All Rights Reserved. ©Mary Holton Robare 2019.

The Cather-Robinson Quilt, d. 1848, is now in the collection of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley following its donation by the Willa Cather Institute of Shenandoah University.

Special thanks to Dr. Deborah A. Lee for sharing the letter from Cornelia Taylor to Albert Cook Myers dated 1946, as well as her transcription of the William Tate Memorandum Book, 1840-1870. Personal Papers, Samuel M. Janney Papers, ACC. 24678E, Location 4/B/10/7/3. Transcription by Deborah A. Lee, August 18, 2009. 

Gandy, Mary Goins. Guide My Feet, Hold My Hand. Canton, Missouri: The Press News Journal, 1987.

Joint Committee of Hopewell Friends, Assisted by John Wayland. Hopewell Friends History 1734-1934. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1993.

Kerns, Wilmer L.. Frederick County, Virginia: Settlement and Some First Families of Back Creek Valley 1730-1830. Baltimore, Maryland: Gateway Press, Inc. 1995.

Lawrence, Lee. "William and Priscilla Tate." Nest of Abolitionists, July 2019. https://lincolnquakers.com/william-tate-prisilla-and-mary/ 

Robare, Mary Holton. Quilts and Quaker Heritage: Selections from an Exhibition. Winchester, Virginia: Hillside Studios, 2008.

_______, When This You See Remember Me… Schoolgirl Samplers of Winchester and Frederick County, Virginia. Winchester, Virginia: Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society, 2010.

Romines, Ann. "Willa Cather: A Life with Quilts," in Stout, Janis P. Willa Cather & Material Culture. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: The University of Alabama Press, 2005, pps. 15-36.

Taylor, Yardely, and Publishers Thomas Reynolds & Robert Pearsall Smith. Map of Loudoun County, Virginia. Philadelphia: Thomas Reynolds & Robert Pearsall Smith, 1854. Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/2012589658/

Virginia Consortium of Quilters. Quilts of Virginia 1607-1899: The Birth of America Through the Eye of a Needle. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 2006.