Quarterly Examines Differences Between Plains, Midwestern Amish Quilts

"Was windy from south, we quilt all day."

Janneken Smucker used this 1927 quote by Gertrude Miller of Haven, Kan., to introduce her article on Kansas Amish quilts in the latest issue of Great Plains Quarterly, a peer-reviewed journal published by the Center for Great Plains Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Smucker compared quilts made by Amish in Kansas settlements to those made in the major Amish settlements in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana. Quilts made by these Kansas Amish settlers demonstrate characteristics of their cultural and religious life that distinguish them from non-Amish settlers in Kansas and from the Amish settlements in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana.

"Quilts made by the Kansas Amish have simply been lumped together with other Midwestern Amish quilts and not explored as distinct expressions of their culture in the plains," said Smucker. "By using artifact analysis, we can discover new insights into both the quilts and the unique cultural history of the Amish living in Kansas."

For her quilt analysis, Smucker used a modification of an artifact study model developed by E. McClung Fleming. Through her examination of the quilts for five properties -- history, material, construction, design, and function -- Smucker concluded, "These quilts, while no doubt Amish, were shaped by their existence in the Great Plains and thus are uniquely Kansas Amish."

Smucker was able to study and research Amish crib quilts in the Sara Miller Collection at UNL's International Quilt Study Center. In 2003, Smucker demonstrated her research as curator and producer of a rotating, year-long exhibition of Amish crib quilts at UNL's Great Plains Art Collection. She is the lead author of "Amish Crib Quilts from the Midwest: The Sara Miller Collection," published in 2003 by Good Books. Smucker, who earned a master's degree in textile history from UNL, resides in Philadelphia and is entering a doctoral program in American civilization at the University of Delaware.

Great Plains Quarterly is edited by Charles A. Braithwaite. The 2004 winter issue can be found in bookstores or by contacting the Center for Great Plains Studies at (402) 472-3082.

CONTACT: Charles Braithwaite, Great Plains Studies, (402) 472-6178