Ann Sewell Hawkins was born on March 25, l806, in England. She married James Hawkins in 1842. They first heard the Gospel in 1849 through Eli B Kelsey who was laboring as a missionary in England. They were converted to the true Gospel, sold what they had and prepared to emigrate to Zion.
They crossed the ocean and then crossed the plains with the Jacob Gates company, arriving in Salt Lake City in October 1853.
When Ann was a widow, with grown children, she loved to visit her children and grandchildren.
Her granddaughter, Mary, recorded that Grandmother Ann was one of the sweetest, most congenial, dear old souls she had ever known. She had a sweet, kind face. Her hair was white, parted in the middle, always glossy, with a natural wave. She had a sweet smile for everyone.
Ann was a very ambitious person. She always had to be busy at something. She loved to sew, and working on quilts was one of her hobbies.
When she came to visit she would ask first thing if her daughter Margaret had saved any pieces of cloth for her quilts.
She made a crazy-patch quilt of silk and velvet pieces, and embroidered around each little piece with silk floss in a fancy stitch. Many of the pieces had a flower or design in the center. She entered this quilt into the Utah State Fair when she was eighty-three years old and won a blue ribbon. Her family was very proud of her.
The quilt has been on display at the Pioneer Memorial Museum in Salt Lake City for many years.
LaRhea Hawkins Marchant, my grandmother and Ann’s great-granddaughter, also loved to make quilts. She made a quilt for each of her grandchildren. When LaRhea passed away, I inherited some of her leftover fabric.
I decided that this little quilt would be the perfect project for some of my grandma’s fabric, especially because Ann loved to use scrap fabric from family members for her quilts as well.
The kids, especially the boys, really enjoyed this project. They liked learning how to sew by hand. This will be a doll quilt when it’s all finished. 🙂
