Lucinda Powell Propst's Quilt  (1851-1852)

contributed by Alison Krutsch and  Anne Comer

As Featured in: Treasures in the Trunk, by Mary Baywater Cross. Rutledge Hill Press (1993) p.66.
The quilt measures 85 1/2" x 77".
 "Its fabrics of soft-shaded red, yellow and greens are those of the 1840s.   The appliquéd tulip in the lexion of symbols means `reknown, fame, spring, dreaminess'.  The simple swag border on three sides adds an element of delight." 

This quilt was made by family and friends for Lucinda Powell Propst (1817-1852) prior to her emigration to Oregon in 1852.  Lucinda was the daughter of  Joseph and Sarah Alkire Powell.  In 1836 she married Anthony Propst and became the mother of six children. In 1851 her parents and brothers John, Noah and Alfred emigrated to Oregon.  Anxious to join her parents, the Propst family packed up and headed west with their five remaining children (Sarah had died earlier) and a young nephew, Franklin Propst.

The emigration of 1852 was a year of cholera and death.  Lucinda became one of the number of fatalities for that year when she died 19 August 1852 on Butter Creek, near Echo, in Umatilla county.  Her husband continued on with the children and reached the Philip Foster place in Clackamas County.  There he also succumbed, leaving the children to be raised by their Powell uncles in Linn and Benton counties.

The quilt was in the possesion of  Lucinda's eldest son, John Wesley Propst.  It was handed down to Wanita Propst Haugen and has become a treasured heirloom of the Propst family.  For additional information on the Powell and Propst families see Emigration of 1851 and Emigration of 1852