H4562.19

"Friendship" quilt decorated with signatures of identifiable Oakland residents. (Inez Brooks-Myers 5/96) 30 cotton muslin blocks appliqued and bound in red with many signatures in the same hand in black ink. Donor file states that the quilt was made by members of the 2nd Congregational Church in Oakland c.1885, and was used as a money-raiser. (6/20/01-from the donor file) ( quilt research by Dawn Moser , dated October, 1980) Using Oakland City Directories from 1882 through 1886/1887 (none for 1885) in collection of Oakland History Room, Oakland Public Library: Names from the centers of the (quilt) squares, those in circles, 6 had no listings, of those one may be a misspelling of a name listed and one, a Miss., may have been living in the household of a relative and was not counted for directory purposes. Of these 6, 3 lived on Franklin, Harrison, and Market Sts . All others lived between the CPRR yards and 13th St., the Bay and Market St. Names researched so far (about 50), almost all lived or worked in the area above. I believe that the quilt was made by the ladies of the 2nd Congregational Church circa 1885 and was a money raiser item. The workmanship and design seem to me to rule out a presentation quilt. The names on the center can be traced to husbands who were in jobs ranging from workers at the rail yards or on the trains, through real estate, owners of businesses to superintendents of large firms. This leads me to believe that a guild rather than a circle of friends worked on the quilt. Also, in the 1885 report, the Church earned $284.00 for charity, a sum larger by $100.00 or more than they usually raised. 2nd Congregational Church was founded in 1868 and its records seem to have been lost. When the neighborhood became more industrial, the congregation may have merged or disbanded. 1st Congregational of Oakland, the Congregational Conference and the Pacific School of Religion ( the normal repositories for old material,) have not a trace of their records. The Church was on Chase St. between Wood and Willow, easily accessible to the neighborhood in which most of those on the quilt lived. It has disappeared without a trace. There are empty lots on either side of Chase in the block in which it was placed on old maps. However, at the Pacific School of Religion, in their archives, was found a book containing minutes of the Northern Calif. General Assoc. of the Congregational Church for several years in this period. By 1885,Walter Freer was the acting pastor and resided at 1030 Peralta, (a narrow Victorian row type house which still exists). He came the 2nd in 1882. The membership was 275. They were financially sound; owed no debt had Church property valued at $12,000.00, raised $1,725.00 for expenses and $284.65 for charity. Looking at their own and even larger churches, This latter amount seems large, but if they had used the quilt to raise money, they could have raised $60.00 alone by selling signature spaces at $.25 each Mrs. Collyer is listed as a delegate to the annual meeting in 1884. In 1886, Mr. And Mrs. L.B. Collins were delegates. L.P. and Mrs. Collins are listed on the quilt. As to the Chase family: On the quilt we have Mrs. And Mr. J.A. or Q.A., also a Mr. Kohler is on her square. Q.A. was a partner in Kohler and Chase, pianos, organs, musical instruments, etc. They also were partners in the Kohler-Chase House which later became the Brunswick. Q.A. Chase was the Chase who later lived in Moss Cottage. At this time Moses Chase lived with George at 202 Ninth St.. Moses listed himself in 1883/84 as "capitalist" and in 1886/87 as "real estate". The other Chases in 1883/84 directory are: Miss A. D. - 922 Kirkham Charles B. - collector at Kohler and Chase, N.E. corner of Division and Wood E.J. - first Sargeant, Oakland Police.- 927 Wood All of these Chases lived in the neighborhood of the Church Sprague C. - contractor - 662, 24th St By 1886/87 The listings are: None for Miss A. D. - she may have moved uptown. A Miss A Chase was admitted to 1st Congregational Church in 1886. And she was now perhaps living with relatives rather than alone. Charles B. - Clerk , Kohler and Chase Edw. C - Salesman K-C - 911 Wood Edw. J.- police officer- 1754 Division Miss Estelle - elocutionist- 821 Ma Frank - with Culver and McGilvray (large lumber dealer- )-830 E. 12th St George - Deputy tax Collector - 202 E. 9th Moses - real estate - 202 E. 9th Quincy A. - Kohler and Chase - Moss Cottage Broadway S. C. -mfg. Desiccated coconut - 721 Coulter Chick- not on quilt but since the family is Chase connected were looked up in the City Directory: 1883/84 Miss O.J. - saleslady,at Kohler and Chase - 1410 Broach Mrs. R.S. Saleslady at Taft and Pennayer- 658 8th St. ( the records include a street map of the First Ward of Oakland with the block of Chase Street, where the church stood, highlighted in red. There is also a list of names and a "map" of the quilt squares).

Used: bedding | Second Congregational Church | Oakland | Prescott neighborhood