On this day in 2002, the turret of the ironclad Union warship, the U.S.S. Monitor, was raised from the spot on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean where it sat since the ship sank in 1862. Divers worked for six weeks to bring the ship to the surface, finding the remains of two of the 16 Monitor crew members who died when the ship sank off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.
Mary Gibbs, of coastal Beaufort, North Carolina, hand pieced and hand quilted this Nine Patch between 1850-75. Gibbs’ great-great granddaughter received the quilt as gift and commented that it “did not look like it had ever been used.” The quilt was documented in 1986 during the North Carolina Quilt Project.
View this quilt on The Quilt Index to read more about its history, design and construction. Be sure to use the zoom tool for a detailed view.
Posted by Amy E. Milne
Executive Director, Quilt Alliance