The Dunstable Tercentennial Quilt

Fifty Years and Two Villages later…
Pictured from Left to Right: Ethel Weisberg, Judy Larter, Margery Kimpton, Sally Coan, Joan Hanchett, Milly Cunningham, Elaine C
Pictured from Left to Right: Ethel Weisberg, Judy Larter, Margery Kimpton, Sally Coan, Joan Hanchett, Milly Cunningham, Elaine Crandall, Marilyn Pike

Part 1:  1973 - Dunstable, Massachusetts

At the time of Dunstable’s 300th Anniversary Celebration in 1973, interest in patchwork quilting had been revived.  Sally Field, renowned quilter from Chelmsford, gave a series of quilting lessons through the Tyngsboro-Dunstable Historical Society, and from those lessons the Tercentennial Quilt was born. Twenty-five ladies volunteered to make squares; ultimately 14 were completed.  They were held in safe-keeping first by Milly Cunningham and then by Judy Larter, who took them with her when she retired to Cazenovia, NY. 

Part 2:  2021-2023 Cazenovia, New York

With the encouragement & help of new friends, and the 350th anniversary approaching, Judy Larter assembled the squares, borders in the ”Flying Geese” pattern added, and the quilt completed, at last.  We hope Milly Cunningham with forgive us for the machine quilting which FINALLY, after 50 years, thanks to the skillful Penny Emerick of Cazenovia, brought the quilt to completion.

For more information on these amazing women and the squares they created, keep reading...

anniversary quilt

Quilt Row 1: 

Cheryl (Adamowich) Kane: The Scarecrow:  Cheryl grew up in Dunstable and is the mother of three children.  Her eldest, Jason Ford, won renown as one of the early (and very successful) professional snowboarders.  She resides in south central Massachusetts.

Margery Kimpton: The Union School: The Kimptons moved to Dunstable in 1970 where Margery taught at Swallow Union and Groton Dunstable Regional High School until her retirement.  Of course she wanted to make the Union School block!  She included their children Jenny with her long pigtails (in Brownie uniform), their son Peter, and Jenny’s first friend in Dunstable, Darlene Goss. 

Sandy Gates: The Stone Arch Bridge:  Sandy and her husband Curt operated The Stoneworks at 11 Pleasant Street for many years until their retirement to Arizona.  A professional writer, Curt authored Dunstable Village

Quilt Row 2  

Janice McGonagle: Meeting House Cemetery: Jan and her husband Bill were long-time residents of Dunstable where they raised their children B.J. and Vicki.  She was a homemaker who enjoyed needlecraft and a member of the Dunstable Evangelical Congregational Church. 

Sally Coan: Town Hall: Sally and her husband Wally lived on Lake Massapoag’s waterfront.  Sally’s whimsical  handsewn ornaments still decorate many Dunstable Christmas trees!  Although childless themselves, the Coans enjoyed sharing their beach with friends and their children.  

Elizabeth Savini: Apple orchard: Beth lived on Pond Street where she raised her 3 children.  Also a gifted homemaker, cook,  and seamstress, she often helped her dear friend Milly Cunningham in her shops.  

Quilt Row 3

Joan Hanchett:  Native American canoeist: When she was just 17, Joan traveled from Ireland to visit her aunt who lived in Tyngsboro.  She met and married Dunstable native Frank Hanchett.  Four children and several moves later, she decided to stay, never losing her wonderful Irish lilt and gift of infectious laughter.  

Elaine Crandall-Burt: Town Seal: The Crandalls moved to the top of the hill on Valley Road in the late 1960’s, where they raised 7 children.  There, Elaine established Wildwood Farms, a unique flower and gift shop, moving on to The Potpourri Shop at Calmore, and until retirement, Montage at the North Chelmsford mills. When the completed blocks were laid out in 2021, it was discovered that the Town Seal was missing, and so she whipped out her sewing kit and made our central block!  

A Mystery:  Is the third block in row 3 depicting Salmon Brook or the Nashua River?  And who created it??

Quilt Row 4

Judith Kroll Larter: The Town Pound: Judy moved to Dunstable after her marriage to Ted Larter.  Their former home, which they moved from Hollis to its present location at 194 Main Street, is one of the oldest in Dunstable.  The Larter family is known for its many generous gifts to preserve the natural resources and history of Dunstable.

Mildred Goldthwaite Cunningham: The Watering Trough: Gift of Jonas French: Milly was a talented cook and seamstress.  Born in Dunstable, she and her husband raised their children Beth and Barry at their home on Pond Street, later retiring to Amherst, NH, to be closer to their granddaughters, Laura and Jill.   Milly was the proprietress of The School House Gallery on the corner of Kendall Road and Route 3 in Tyngsboro, later moving her shop to the corner of Farwell Road and Route 3. One of her wonderful quilts hangs in Fellowship Hall at the Dunstable church; another hangs in the State House in Boston, and many, many more grace homes throughout the area. 

Judy Larter: Sarah Tyng Winslow Schoolhouse:  Built in 1790 and donated to the Historical Society by the William Farrow family of Tyngsboro, “The Little Red Schoolhouse”  was moved to its present location in 1970 on land donated by Margaret O. Larter.  It continues to be the meeting place of the Tyngsboro Dunstable Historical Society.  Her block depicts her daughter Jenny and her son Alan in colonial garb.  Pepper, their black sheep, must have followed them to school one day!

Quilt Row 5

Lucienne Holmes: Horse and Carriage:  Lucienne loved needlework: she could skillfully tailor a suit or create a quilt block on demand.  She had a mischievous sense of humor and a raucous laugh, in contrast to her much more serious husband Mozart , V.P. at Wannalancit Textile Mills.

Cindy Marriner: Dunstable Evangelical Congregational Church:  Active and faithful members of the church, Cindy and Tom raised three daughters in their 1790 home at the top of Westford Street.  Tom was a talented woodsmith , and when they moved to Dublin, NH, after their girls had grown, they operated The Carpentry Shop, filled with Tom’s Shaker style boxes and furniture. 

Marilyn Pike: Forest Animals:  Marilyn and Andy Pike raised their two daughters on Kemp Street.  Whimsical and quiet, Marilyn’s choice of subjects suits her.  She now resides in Texas, close to her daughter, Elizabeth.