“On this day in 1777, British troops under the command of General William Tryon attacked the town of Danbury, Connecticut, and begin destroying everything in sight. Facing little, if any, opposition from Patriot forces, the British went on a rampage, setting fire to homes, farmhouse, storehouses and more than 1,500 tents.”

This hand appliqued and hand quilted Tree of Life (Palampore) quilt was made by an unknown quilter in 1777 in New Jersey. From this Quilt Index record:

“The central motif was cut from a single printed textile and stitched to the background fabric. Additional branches were expertly added to give the design needed width. Free form leaves were appliqued in the corners above the tree. The extremely fine quilting includes crosshatching and tiny clamshells the size of the end of a finger. Free formed shaped leaves appliqued in corners above trees.”

The quilt is owned by the Drake House in Plainfield, New Jersey and was documented as part of the Heritage Quilt Project of New Jersey.

View this quilt on The Quilt Index to find out! Read more about its history, design and construction. Be sure to use the zoom tool for a detailed view or click the “See full record” link to see a larger image and all the data entered about that quilt.

Source:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/british-attack-danbury-connecticut

Posted by Amy E. Milne
Executive Director, Quilt Alliance
amy.milne@quiltalliance.org