Redwork
Figures Straight from the “Funny Papers”
by Patricia L. Cummings
photo by James Cummings
A unique Redwork quilt
reveals a quilter's sense of humor, love of country life
and
penchant for fanciful designs!
Recently, an irresistible
quilt surfaced at an estate sale held at the former home of Bernice
Berkheiser Reeder (1917-2011), Emmaus, (in Berk's County),
Pennsylvania. This particular Redwork quilt includes a number of
prominent comic strip characters of the twentieth century. Other
designs in the quilt call to mind a possible association with fairy
tales such as “the Tortoise and the Hare” and “The Ugly
Duckling.”At least one nursery rhyme is represented and other
blocks demonstrate the quilt maker's love of farm animals. Evidently
made to be enjoyed by a young person during the 1930s/1940s, this
charming
twin size bed quilt
measures 75 inches
x 64 inches.
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Redwork Cartoon Characters Quilt |
Mrs. Reeder, a former silk
mill employee who worked in the Allentown, Pennsylvania area,
attached little notes to other objects found in her home after her
death. For example, the hat she wore in 1935 on New Year's Eve has a
paper attached to it that delineates all of her activities that
evening. A set of bisque bride and groom figures are identified as
having graced her wedding cake. Unfortunately, she left no written
provenance to indicate who embroidered and hand-quilted this quilt.
Since the lucky acquisition of this special vintage textile, we have
been busy trying to identify some sources of its designs.
“Li'l Abner”
“Li'l
Abner” (Yokum), the main character of a syndicated comic strip that
ran from 1934 to 1977, is depicted on a quilt block in the top row. A
product of the imagination of cartoonist Al Capp, Li'l Abner lives in
the hillbilly haven of Dogpatch, Kentucky. Although handsome, one of
Li'l Abner's goals is to avoid marriage even though he is pursued by
willing young ladies. He continues to live at the home of his
parents, Mammy and Pappy Yokum. Other characters featured in a film
that I viewed include “Daisy Mae,” “Hairless Joe” and
“Earthquake McGoo,” all very amusing!
“Maggie” and “Jiggs”
My husband, Jim, recognizes
two side by side figures in the fourth row down as “Maggie” and
“Jiggs” from the comic strip titled “Bringing Up Father.”
These characters were first introduced by cartoonist George McManus
circa 1911 and were firmly established in their own comic strip in
1913. Both the conflict and humor of the series centers on the
million dollars that “Jiggs” won in a lottery. He was suddenly
catapulted from the status of “shanty Irish” to “lace curtain
Irish,” terms common in the twentieth century that amuse me as my
paternal grandmother of Irish ancestry was fond of using them! In
stereotypical fashion, Jiggs' social-climbing wife is unwillingly to
allow him to continue hanging around with his Irish friends who
frequent the local tavern and favor eating corned beef and cabbage
(an Irish-American dish, not of Irish origin!).
“Blondie”
At the far right side of the
fourth row down is a figure that looks like “Blondie,” often
described as a “carefree flapper.” The popular slang word
“flapper” is reserved for young ladies of the 1920s whose
morality was sometimes questioned because of their short dresses,
intake of alcohol, and performance of dances new at the time.”
First drawn by Chick Young and first published in 1930, the “Blondie”
comic strip features “Blondie Boopadoop.” According to wikipedia,
the online encyclopedia, the name “Boopadoop” stems from a song
popularized by singer Helen Kane in 1928. Blondie is later featured
as Mrs. Bumstead, appearing in the series “Dagwood Bumstead,” as
a married woman with two children, Alexander and Cookie, and a dog
named “Daisy” with her pups.
“Popeye” and “Wimpy”
Some of the comic strip
figures, such as “Popeye,” are readily recognizable. On a quilt
block, his muscular arm seems to be at-the-ready to hit someone
(perhaps the bully, Bluto, who was always trying to win over the
affection of Olive Oil, Popeye's girlfriend. Those familiar with this
character will remember his favorite song, a defining statement: “I'm
Popeye the Sailor Man, I'm Popeye the Sailor Man, I'm strong to the
finish cuz I eats me spinach, I'm Popeye the Sailor Man!”
On another block, an image
of Popeye's friend “J. Wellington Wimpy,” is embroidered. He is
better known as “The Moocher” whose main quest in life is to eat
hamburgers, especially ones he can attain by trickery. His memorable
line is “I'll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today!”
“Mickey Mouse,”
“Minnie Mouse” and “Dagwood”
Two Walt Disney stars who
are “mouse” figures are featured in the sixth row down and need
no introduction. One block over is “Dagwood Bumstead,” appears to
be running. He made his debut in Chic Young's “Blondie” comic
strip circa 1933. Dagwood is perhaps most remembered for his
elaborate “Dagwood sandwich,” a specialty that he concocted that
was stacked high with lunch meat and other ingredients. He is
constantly tries to manage daily challenges like trying to get to
work on time and having run-ins with other characters. He is
especially protective of the virtue of his popular daughter,
“Cookie,” who has many suitors.
Farm Animal Blocks
Variety of blocks is the
name of the game for this unusual quilt. Included are many examples
of farm animals. A calf with his head in a bucket, a cowboy on
horseback wielding a lasso, a horse jumping a fence, a boy holding a
watering can accompanied by his faithful canine companion, a pig with
piglets, a goose and her goslings, a sheep and lambs, as well as a
rooster, all call to mind life in the country. The former owner of
this quilt appears to have loved farm animals. Both plastic and
carved wood figurines of horses and cows were found as part of her
collected items.
Animals: a Constant Theme
Several large dog designs
remind me of “Lassie” but it is difficult to know whether or not
that particular fictional dog inspired the blocks. “Lassie” was
first introduced in the novel Lassie Come Home by Eric Knight
in 1940. Three years later, the first Lassie movie was produced by
MGM studios.
A dressed-up pig and a fish
in a tuxedo are a couple of the more whimsical blocks. In Red &
White: American Redwork Quilts, Deborah Harding identifies a
similar image of a bunny holding a shovel as “Peter Rabbit.” The
character is featured in the famous book “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”
by Beatrix Potter, first created in 1893 and first published in 1901.
According to Harding, the inclusion of this particular figure would
date the quilt to sometime after 1910.
Various profiles of girls
are present, some of which resemble figures seen on other nineteenth
century quilts and some of which look like Sunbonnet Sue figures. A
nursery rhyme block with the words, “Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater,”
is the same design that appears on a vintage Bluework child's quilt
in my collection.
Public Records
In attempting to learn more
about the woman who loved this quilt, the only tangible information
came from public records. The obituary of Bernice E. (Berkheiser) Reeder (1917-2011) states that she was active in the Veteran's of
Foreign Wars. She was married for 57 years to Bland W. Reeder
(1916-1999), foreman in the slag plant of Bethlehem Steel
Corporation. He retired in 1978. The couple is buried at Indiantown
Gap National Cemetery (for veterans) in Annville, (Lebanon County)
Pennsylvania.
The edges of the Redwork
quilt show signs of being “well-used and well-loved.”
Nonetheless, we are so happy that this precious quilt was saved! Its
images are a window to the twentieth century life, a time of
turbulence when keeping a sense of humor was crucial to one's sense
of well-being. Newspapers at that time were an even more vital means
of communication than today and readers could always find a chuckle
in the slice-of-life comics section. One point is clear: the person
who made this quilt enjoyed choosing these designs!
A Buy for the Soul
All things considered, at
the present time this quilt is a favorite! After many washings, the
quilt feels very soft to the touch. The batting has migrated,
obscuring the lines of quilting from the front. However, in turning
the quilt to the reverse side, it is apparent that the quilter drew
designs that resemble flower petals as a guide for hand quilting each
block from that side. I will enlist the help of readers to discover
about this quilt. If anyone knows the origin of any of the other
blocks, please feel free to contact me by writing to
quiltersmuse@gmail.com
Studying this quilt and trying to decipher its “mysteries” is
certainly a lot of fun!
Copyright 2014. Patricia L. Cummings, Concord, NH. All rights reserved.