Textiles (Needlework)
Mary Wright Alsop (Knitter)
Middletown, Connecticut, United States, North America
1817
Silk; Metal; Leather; Brass
Knit, Sewn
1955.0003.006
Object Number1955.0003.006 |
Purse (Purse or handbag)
Textiles (Needlework)
Gift of Henry Francis du Pont
Mary Wright Alsop (Knitter)
1740-1829
Mary Wright Alsop was born in Middletown, Connecticut in 1740. She was the only child of Joseph Wright (1704-1775) and Hanah Gilbert Wright (1718-1804). Her father was a prosperous farmer and brickyard owner. An only child, she received an education at Sarah Osborn's School in Newport, Rhode Island in 1754. Mary married Richard Alsop (1726-1776), also of Middletown, on April 27, 1760. Richard, from a wealthy New York family, developed a successful business as a Middletown-based West Indies merchant. Mary gave birth to ten children during their 16-year marriage, eight of which survived past infancy. Richard died unexpectedly at the age of 50, in 1776. Richard had made Mary sole administratrix of his vast estate, which took 14 years to settle. Enslaved labor afforded Mary Wright Alsop the time to produce ornamental needlework throughout her adult life. In 1792 Mary sat for a portrait by Ralph Earl, a carte-de-visite of which (1955.0003.021) forms part of the Alsop needlework collection at Winterthur. Mary died in 1829 in Middletown at the age of 89. Mary’s embroideries and knitted objects survive in several museums and private collections.
Middletown, Connecticut, United States, North America
1817
1. Signature; front, right hand edge; "M. ALSOP M:A 7" (knit silk threads)
2. Inscription; note card, inside; Purse knit by / My Great Grandmother / Mary Wright Alsop / (wife of Richard Alsop) / for / her Eldest Daughter / Mary Alsop / Lucy Chauncey Alsop" (handwritten, ink)
Silk; Metal; Leather; Brass
Knit, Sewn
Hand-knit
5 (H) , 2 (W)
12.7 (H) , 5.08 (W)
Text available soon.
[Journal] Krueger, Glee. "A Middletown Cameo: Mary Wright Alsop and Her Needlework.". Connecticut Historical Society Museum & Library Vol. 52, No.3-4 Summer/Fall 1987
• Published: pp. 202-203, fig. 30; pp. 125-137, biography of Mary
[Book] Swan, Susan Burrows. 1977 Plain & Fancy: American Women and Their Needlework, 1700-1850.
• Published: p.116, pl. 20
[Book] Swan, Susan Burrows. 1995 Plain and Fancy: American Women and their Needlework, 1650-1850.
• Published: p. 148, pl. 22
[Book] Miller, Marla R. The Needle's Eye: Women and Work in the Age of Revolution.
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