This sampler typifies early 19th century American schoolgirl needlework with its alphabets, brief moral verse, and exuberant and disproportionate pictorial scene and borders. A Federal style house is flanked by oversized flowers and an eagle as seen from a childish perspective. The variety of stitches used makes this sampler is an excellent early learning tool.

Origin and date: New England, 1819

Linen count/finished size: 30 count, 10-1/4"x11-1/4". Kit contains fabric, silk or cotton thread, needle and instructions.

Stitches: Cross, stem, half cross, herringbone, queen, back, Florentine, satin, stem

Source: The Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, Vermont