As American as apple pie, quilting is woven into the fabric of the United States’ history, reflecting practicality, artistry and cultural identity. Passed down through generations, these handcrafted artworks tell stories of everyday people, particularly women, whose voices were not included in official records but who still helped shape the nation.
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s International Quilt Museum is sharing these stories through its exhibition “Material Nation: 250 Years of American Quilts.”
In honor of the nation’s 250th birthday, the exhibition includes more than 250 quilts and quilt-related objects sourced from the museum’s collection — the largest publicly held collection in the world. The quilts on view, many for the first time, trace American material culture and thread together more than two centuries of the creativity, innovation and community that made quilting a quintessentially American art form.
The exhibition opens July 2 and will run through Dec. 19.
Planning for the exhibition began about three years ago. Leslie Levy, the Ardis and Robert James Executive Director of the museum, said curators and staff quickly realized that to share the nation’s story, the exhibition would need to be larger than anything they had done before.
“This is the first time we've ever installed an exhibition that has encompassed the entire museum,” Levy said. “All of our curators got together and really thought about how to best represent the history of American quilt making. It is a rich, multilayered story, so we couldn’t show just one period or one type of quilt.
“We oftentimes will say that quilts are the textile pages of our shared history, because when people quilt, they are capturing what is happening at that time.”
Each of the museum’s six galleries were curated by a member of the museum team representing a time period or theme in American history. The quilts, their historical information and broader information about the history taking place when the quilts were created is included in each gallery.
"For a visitor coming into the museum, what we want them to see is the importance of quilting in our American history, and what an intimate art form it was that represented people from all cultures, all time periods," said Carolyn Ducey, founding curator of collections, who retired in 2025.
A running theme throughout is American innovation. In the nation’s earliest days, most fabrics had to be imported and constructing quilts was done entirely by hand.
“When you look in the gallery that has our oldest quilts in it … the complexity, the detail, the sheer beauty of a quilt that's more than 200 years old, it has a feeling and an effect on you,” Levy said.
Ducey, who curated a gallery spanning the 1790s to the 1860s, noted that as the nation declared its independence, American quilting — and the diverse cultures of its residents — was taking root.
"We very deliberately tried to include examples of all different types of quilts: African American quilts, Native American quilts, quilts from newly immigrated individuals who brought their traditions from their homeland,” Ducey said. “We discuss the input of enslaved individuals on the cotton industry, and we have a really beautiful piece that honors enslaved individuals made by an artist from Omaha.”
By 1870, the industrial revolution had spurred a new revolution in quilting: Fabrics and machines were made in America, making them less expensive and more accessible. The 100 years between 1870 and 1970 is explored in one gallery, noting the “mind-boggling” changes in quilt making, including the more plentiful manufacturing of fabrics, more affordable sewing machines and mass market publications that shared patterns, techniques and tips, spurring a boom in creativity and new quilters.
And there is a gallery exploring contemporary quilting, in all its forms. Present-day quilt making has moved beyond the home, into clothing, artists’ studios, museums and as wall-adorning art pieces.
“When you walk through the doors at the International Quilt Museum, you will encounter galleries of quilts and experiences that will change your definition of the word ‘quilt.’ It will broaden your horizons,” Levy said. “You will see things that intrigue you, things that literally change your molecules. You can't help but learn something about history, something about design, something about our culture and society.”
To celebrate the exhibition, the museum is partnering with Nebraska Public Media for the America 250 Community Celebration, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 18. The free, family-friendly open house will feature light refreshments in the screening room, where selected clips from Ken Burns’ documentary “The American Revolution” will play, as well as an all-ages craft station. Registration is encouraged. Textile talks with each curator are planned throughout the rest of the year.
The International Quilt Museum is also partnering with Craft in America for “Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026,” a nationwide initiative to showcase the importance of the handmade throughout history and in contemporary life.
The International Quilt Museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays but will be closed July 3-6 in observance of Independence Day. More information on museum hours and admission is available online.
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