Episode 109 - Beth Donaldson – The Quilt Index

Our guest today is Beth Donaldson, quiltmaker, quilt book author, and Associate Director of the Quilt Index www.quiltindex.org an online repository of quilt information housed at MATRIX: Center for Digital Humanities & Social Sciences at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

Born and raised in suburban Detroit, Beth made her first quilt in 1974. She taught quilting beginning in the 1980’s and has written two books on quilting, Block By Block, and Charm Quilts and co-authored two others, Quilts and Human Rights and Quilts and Health.

She’s taught, lectured and run quilt retreats…and in 1997 got a job in the quilt collection at the MSU Museum where the Quilt Index was developed. Beth has since retired from the MSU Museum but still works on the Quilt Index which now contains 96,860 entries.

Beth has two adult children, one grandson and she and her husband of 45 years make their home in Lansing, MI. Hello Beth and Welcome to Sew & So.

(2:05) Beth’s mom and sister both sewed…Beth learned from them and especially her7th grade Home Economics class. This first quilt had 5 later! After 5 years is collapsed under its own weight. Favorite quilt…1873 “We Wish You A Merry Christmas Mrs. Haft!”

(2:56) 1974 as a high school junior, Beth and her friends created their first quilts.

(5:15) Beth is deeply involved in the quilting community starting in 1984 with the Kansas City Quilt Guild. Elected VP…she served for a month until the President left, and she stepped up to run the guild. “When you volunteer, you make friends!”

(6:50) Beth talks about the special moments she holds from her teaching. Quilters may not say yes…but they sure know what they don’t like!

(8:00) Beth explains machine quilting as-you-go.

(9:43) Beth taught classes in her sister’s historic hotel in Petosky, MI. She explains how this came to be and why her classes became so popular so quickly. Learn why she hired, fired and then rehired herself as a teacher for these classes.

(11:22) Beth explains how she came to work for the Michigan State University Quilt Index. It began with “Quilt Documentation” and the American Quilt Study Group. In 1984 Beth got involved with the Michigan statewide project…after documenting she volunteered to help choose which quilts would go into the quilt books. What happened after that? Listen  here to find out!

(16:10) How did Michigan State University become the location for keeping the Quilt Index?

(17:28) How is all of this documentation coordinated? Learn about the MATRIX system at Michigan State. Also, learn how the documentation data differed from state to state and why…if you don’t ask the question, you won’t get the answer! Learn the enormous complexities involved in finding and coordinating quilt records. Do you have records you think might be of interest to Beth? Email her at donald20@msu.edu. Of find her contact information on the Quilt Index webpage.

Have a quilt to submit – go to the Quilt In.

(24:10) Did you know that Rosa Parks and Susan B. Anthony were quilters? Learn about their work and that of Ruth Clement Bond who designed quilts in the 1930’s as they worked on the TVA in the 1930’s…known as The Lazy Man Quilts. Learn how the phrase Black Power was used for the first time. Also hear about the Sears Century of Progress Quilts. Marikay Waldvogel and Barbara Brackman’s book on this contest talks of the 25,000 entries. Do you know Bertha Stenge, the queen of quilting in the 1940’s? learn about her here too!

(28:30) Want to learn how to use the index? Beth explains how…right here! www.quiltindex.org . Hear her tips and tricks for navigating the site.

(35:40) Her favorite thing about the quilt index? It’s not curated…they want everything!

(37:05) What’s next for Beth? Find out here?!

(37:58) What’s next for The Quilt Project? So very much…learn about it all here!

Questions about the Quilt Index? Reach out to Beth at donald20@MSU.edu. On the Quilt Index site…fill out the contact form and that will go right to Beth as well

Thank you for joining the fascinating episode about Beth and The Quilt Index. If you reach out to Beth, be sure to tell her you learned about The Quilt Index on Sew & So.

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