Object Number 1957.0671 A

Object Name

Sampler (Fancy sampler)

Category

Textiles (Needlework)

Credit Line/Donor

Bequest of Henry Francis du Pont

Creator (Role)

Sarah Holsworth (Maker)
Little is known about Sarah Holsworth. She worked her silk on linen sampler under the tutelage of Leah Bratten Galliger in 1799. Sarah names Ms. Galligher's parents, her twin sister Rachel, and her husband, Francis Galligher on her sampler. The Lancaster County Historical Society records have limited information on the Holsworth surname: "1800 Census of Lancaster Borough: Adam Holsworth: 2 males under 10, 1 male under 45, 2 femails between 16 and 25, and 1 female over 45. William Holsworth, private, War of 1812, Lancaster Borough" Further research may be required.

Leah Bratten Galligher Meguier (School mistress)
May 23, 1764-February 1, 1830
Leah and her sister Rachel Bratten were born near Wilmington, Delaware in 1764, but by 1778, if not earlier, the Bratten family was living in Derry Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. Leah and Rachel were the youngest of George and Sarah Bratten's (d. 1797) six daughters. They also had a brother named George. They must have had advanced instruction in ornamental needlework, possibly in Philadelphia, or perhaps in Lancaster. Leah and Rachel married at the ages of twenty-seven and twenty-nine. Leah married twice, first to Francis Galligher on November 10, 1791, and second to Isaac Meguier (Maguire) at a later date. As Mrs. Galligher, Leah opened Leah Galligher's School in Lancaster in 1797. In 1802, Leah and Francis Galligher dissolved their marriage. Clearly there were problems with their marriage, as Leah filed for divorce soon after this sampler was made. The reason cited for her divorce was her husband's impotency, which made the couple a focus of both gossip and slander. Shortly thereafter, Leah moved to Harrisburg to open another school. Leah married Isaac Meguier, a boot and shoemaker, on June 15, 1805. In 1806, Leah Meguier's School was named on Rachel Geiger's sampler. The most elaborate samplers to name Leah's school were worked between 1806 and 1812. In the fall of 1815 Leah and Isaac moved to the country; possibly back to Lancaster or even Dauphin, Pennsylvania. The last recorded sampler naming Leah's school was in 1826. Leah died on February 1, 1830. (Ring, Betty. Girlhood Embroidery, Vol. II, pp. 410-417)(Also, see inscription on Sarah Holsworth's sampler 1957.0671 A)

Place of Origin

Lancaster, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Mid-Atlantic, United States, North America

Secondary Place of Origin

Lancaster, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Mid-Atlantic, United States, North America

Mark or Signature or Inscription or Label

1. Inscription; Center of piece, bottom of first text block; "this Sampler Made by one of her scholars Viz Sarah HolsWorth in the year of our Lord 1799" (embroidered thread)
2. Label; Tied on tag; "CHIPPENDALE / STAIR HALL / 57.671" (graphite)
3. Label; Reverse; "57.671" (ink)

Materials

Silk; Linen

Techniques

Embroidered, Woven (plain)

Construction Description

Hand-embroidered

Dimensions (inches)

16.25 (L) , 16 (W)

Dimensions (centimeters)

41.275 (L) , 40.64 (W)

Measurement Notes

The dimensions refer to the visible area inside the frame.

Object Description

Web - 01/20/2016

This is a fancy sampler worked in 1799 by Sarah Holsworth of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, while under the tuition of her instructress Leah Bratten Galligher (Meguier). Mrs. Galligher is thought to have developed this sampler style herself. Many of her student's samplers survive - they embody the typical style of samplers seen throughout the region. The accurate reproduction of the Lancaster Poorhouse might have been made from plans, as it was being constructed in 1799. This might also be explained by Sarah dating her sampler before it was completed. The Lancaster County Poorhouse commenced operations in 1800. Although most samplers feature the family of their maker, Sarah Holsworth's does not. Instead it describes the family of her teacher, Leah Bratton Galligher, who was a controversial figure at the time. Married in 1791, Leah Galligher and her husband, Francis, opened a school in Lancaster in 1797. Clearly there were problems with their marriage, as Leah filed for divorce soon after this sampler was made. The reason cited for her divorce was her husband's impotency, which made the couple a focus of both gossip and slander. Perhaps Leah's family history, displayed so publicly in the Holsworth home, was intended to document her respectability.

Bibliography and Bibliographic Notes

[Book] Ring, Betty. 1993 Girlhood Embroidery: American Samplers & Pictorial Needlework 1650-1850. II.
• Similar: p. 415, Fig. 445
[Book] Swan, Susan Burrows. 1976 A Winterthur Guide to American Needlework.
• Published: p. 16, fig. 6
[Book] Schiffer, Margaret B. 1958 Historical Needlework of Pennsylvania.
• Published: p. 41