Marie Webster facts for kids

Marie Daugherty Webster (born July 19, 1859 – died August 29, 1956) was a very talented American artist. She was famous for designing beautiful quilts. Marie also wrote the very first American book about the history of quilts.

She even started her own business, the Practical Patchwork Company. This company sold her unique quilt patterns. Marie's special designs helped change how quilts looked in the early 1900s. Today, her amazing quilts are shown in museums in the United States and Japan. The Indianapolis Museum of Art has the biggest collection of her work. Marie Webster was honored in the Quilters Hall of Fame in 1991. Her old home in Marion, Indiana, is now the home of the Quilters Hall of Fame!

Marie's Early Life

Marie Daugherty was born on July 19, 1859, in Wabash, Indiana. She was the oldest of six children. Her father was a successful businessman and community leader.

From a young age, Marie learned how to sew by hand from her mother. She went to public schools in Wabash and finished high school in 1878. Even though she loved needlework, Marie didn't start designing quilts until she was about 50 years old.

Family Life and Home

Webster's house in Marion

Marie Daugherty married George Webster Jr. on February 14, 1884. They lived in Marion, Indiana, for most of their 54 years of marriage. They had one son, Lawrence Burns Webster, who became an engineer.

Marie loved her family and was active in her community. She enjoyed reading, sewing, and acting in plays. George was a banker and helped with local school and library boards. In 1902, they built a lovely Colonial Revival-style home in Marion.

The couple enjoyed traveling in the United States and Europe. However, George became ill around 1910, which stopped their travels. Marie started quilting around 1909 while taking care of her husband. George Webster passed away in 1938.

After her husband's death, Marie stayed in her home with her sister, Emma Daugherty. In 1942, Marie and Emma moved to Princeton, New Jersey, to be closer to Marie's son, Lawrence, and his family.

Marie's Amazing Career

First Quilt Designs

In 1909, when Marie was 50, she made her first quilt design. It was a special "appliquéd" quilt, meaning she sewed cut fabric shapes onto a background. Her friends loved it and told her to send it to the Ladies' Home Journal magazine.

The magazine loved her work! In January 1911, they showed four of Marie's quilt designs in full color. These designs, like "Pink Rose" and "Iris," were inspired by flowers in her garden. More of her quilts were featured in the magazine over the next year. The Journal even asked her to write articles, which was a big deal for women artists at the time.

Marie's designs became very popular. People wanted her patterns! Her son, Lawrence, helped make blueprints, and her sister, Emma, helped make paper patterns. Marie created kits that included instructions, patterns, and a picture of the finished quilt. These kits sold for 50 cents each.

Writing a Quilt Book

In 1912, a publishing company asked Marie to write a book about quilts. Her book, Quilts, Their Story and How to Make Them, came out in October 1915. It was the very first full-length book about quilt history published in America!

Marie's book explored quilting from ancient Egypt to the Middle East. She also included chapters on how to quilt and listed over 400 quilt pattern names. The book was a huge success and was reprinted many times. Famous newspapers like The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune gave it great reviews. This book made Marie famous around the world and made her quilt designs even more popular.

Becoming an Entrepreneur

After her book was published, more and more people wanted Marie's quilt patterns. Around 1921, Marie started The Practical Patchwork Company. She ran this mail-order business from her home with her sister, Emma, and two friends.

The company's motto was "A Thing of Beauty Is a Joy Forever." They sold Marie's original quilt designs as kits. These kits came with patterns, instructions, and even pre-cut fabric pieces. They also sold quilts that were partly finished. The company advertised in magazines like House Beautiful and sold to shops. By 1930, the company offered 33 of Marie's unique designs.

Marie's Design Style

Marie Webster designed many quilts and became a leader in the quilting world of the early 1900s. She liked simple, appliquéd quilts with soft, muted colors. Her style was different from the bright, "Crazy Quilt" patterns that were popular before.

Her work showed "balance, harmony, and elegance." Marie often used pastel colors and designs inspired by nature, especially flowers from her garden. Popular patterns included "Iris," "Poppy," and "Morning Glory." Her modern designs were published in magazines and helped inspire many other quilt designers.

Later Years and Legacy

Marie continued to write articles in the 1920s and 1930s. After her husband died in 1938, her friends and family helped run the Practical Patchwork Company. Marie retired from the business in 1942, at age 83. She then moved to New Jersey to live with her son's family.

Marie Webster passed away on August 29, 1956, at 97 years old.

She is remembered as a pioneer in quilt design and business. Her book, Quilts: Their Story and How to Make Them, was a landmark in quilt history. Marie's beautiful appliquéd quilts greatly influenced 20th-century quilting.

In 1991, Marie was inducted into the Quilters Hall of Fame. Her former home in Marion, Indiana, is now the home of the Quilters Hall of Fame. It is also a National Historic Landmark.

Marie's quilts have been shown in many museums and galleries. A special traveling exhibition called "Marie Webster Quilts: A Retrospective" was shown in the 1990s at places like the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the American Folk Art Museum in New York City. Her work was also featured in exhibitions in Japan. The Indianapolis Museum of Art has the largest collection of her quilts in the United States.

Published works

• Quilts, Their Story, and How to Make Them (1915)