Print this page

Shorncliffe Military Hospital Quilt

The Shorncliffe Military Hospital quilt. The Shorncliffe Military Hospital quilt.

The Shorncliffe Military Hospital quilt is a commemorative quilt or autograph quilt, linked to the Shorncliffe Military Hospital (Folkestone, England). During the First World War (1914-1918) wounded soldiers, including Canadians, were treated here. In 1915, the Women’s Institute in Georgetown, Canada, decided to create something for ‘their’ soldiers in the hospital:

‘‘Would all interested in the autograph quilt for the Women’s Institute hasten to secure names that all may be worked and returned by the first week in Sept. to give time to complete for exhibition at the fall fair. We would suggest that there be many family, business, and professional groups, anyone at a distance to have their address attached. Names will be repeated as often as ten cents is paid. The quilt is to be sent away to the Canadian Hospital in England and the remainder of the money used by the Institute to secure comforts for the soldiers” (The Georgetown Herald; 28th July 1915).

There are a total of 355 names on the quilt. It went on display at the Esquesing Agricultural Society Fall Fair in October 1915, before being sent to England. The history of the quilt is then uncertain, but in 2012 Norman Jennings spoke to his nephew, Tony Groves, about “an army blanket thing in the cupboard.” Following the death of Mr. Jennings (23rd April 2012), the ‘blanket’ was found. Mr. Groves realised its historic value and decided to return it to Georgetown (now part of Halton Hills). The quilt is currently on display in the Georgetown Library.

See also: commemorative embroidery

Digital sources:

Digital source of illustration (retrieved 20th June 2016).

GVE

Last modified on Wednesday, 19 April 2017 19:13