Elizabeth Harman; "Catalpa Flower" overshot coverlet; Highland Co., Virginia
date: label: Date made
content: 1827
name: label: maker
content: Harmon, Elizabeth
notes: label: Description
content: According to family legend, Elizabeth Harman wove this overshot coverlet in Highland County, Virginia in 1827. The accession file and original 1914 object label listed the coverlet creation date as 1827, but if Elizabeth Harman (1836-1881) were the weaver, it would likely have been woven between the years 1850-1881. The coverlet could also have been woven in either Highland or Augusta Co., VA. Elizabeth and her husband, Egbert and children moved to the Staunton, VA area between the years 1870-1880. As often happens, family histories tend to blur with subsequent generations. It is possible that Elizabeth Harman wove this coverlet in her youth or was given the coverlet as a wedding or trousseau gift. There is also always the possibility that the 1827 date is accurate, but that the attribution to Elizabeth was confused with an older ancestor. Without interwoven signatures or dates, it becomes impossible to absolutely date and attribute this coverlet.
label: Description
content: This overshot coverlet is woven in the "Catalpa Flower" pattern. This pattern’s name, as with most overshot patterns, varied from region to region and state to state throughout time. In North Carolina this pattern could also be called, “Work Complete,” in Alabama, “Lady’s Fancy,” and “Gentleman’s Fancy” in Kentucky. Although the name varied, the structure remained the same. This coverlet features a plain weave ground composed of single Z-spun cotton warp and weft yarns with single Z-spun supplementary weft pattern floats. It is these floats that create the pattern and give the overshot structure its name.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: New Mexico, Virginia City
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
label: See more items in
content: Coverlets
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content: Textiles
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Mrs. T. S. Harmon
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TE.T1444
label: catalog number
content: T01444.000
label: accession number
content: 057006
objectType: label: Object Name
content: coverlet, overshot
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: overshot (overall production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: catalpa flower (overall pattern)
label: Physical Description
content: blue (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: white (overall color)
label: Physical Description
content: wool (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: cotton (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 82 in x 72 in; 208.28 cm x 182.88 cm