Westtown School-1801

The maker of this sampler is unknown, but it descended in the Maule family. It may have been made by Mercy Maule who attended Westtown from November 1800 to December 1801; she was the niece of the donor's great grandfather. Most sets of initials can be matched to girls who were students in 1801. The sets of initials in the lower right corner are likely those of teachers at the time: Ann Thomas, Rebecca Budd, Martha Barker and Ann Gilbert.
Westtown School was founded in 1799 by the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. Many of the samplers in the schools collection were made as part of the School's curriculum. Many of the early practices at the School can be traced back to Ackworth School, founded in 1779 in Yorkshire, England. This can be seen in the samplers made at Westtown as they feature many of the same motifs as the Ackworth ones.
Girls usually spent two weeks out of a six week period in sewing class where they developed their needlework skills. These included plain sewing, samplers, pin cushions, darning, card cases and other small items, all the while continuing with their other classes.
the sampler is worked using mainly cross stitch and cross over one for all the initials.

Size: 12" x 11.75" (30.5cm x 19.5cm)
Thread Count: 40 count (16 thr/cm) linen.
Colour:
Recommended Level: Beginner to Intermediate
Cost: Chart $26.00
Categories: , Quaker, North American / Mexico
ID: 331

All prices are in US Dollars.