The building's history. The Alling Coverlet Museum in Palmyra has the largest collection of homespun coverlets in the nation. The coverlets date from the 1830s to the 1880s. The building was named for Merle Alling who donated her large collection of coverlets. Upstairs, the museum houses additional coverlets and the quilt room. Mrs. Agnes Griffith was instrumental in acquiring the coverlet collection and donating the building. Margaret Smith was instrumental in making sure the coverlets resided in Palmyra. The Alling Coverlet Museum consists of two floors with an exceptional display of coverlets along with all the tools of the trade--from full-size looms to shuttles and other weaving tools.

The coverlets. Women of the 1800s sat for hours at the looms and wove the coverlets to keep their families warm in the winter months. Most of the coverlets in the museum are woven on both sides, which creates a mirror effect. The dark side of the coverlet was usually shown during the winter while the lighter side of the coverlet was shown during the warmer months.


Palmyra was home to two professional weavers. They were Ira Hadsall and James VanNess. Their business was located on Vienna St. in Palmyra, right near the town and village lines. Many jacquard coverlets were made by these two men. A jacquard coverlet was made on a special loom which took a form of punch cards to duplicate a pattern. The pattern was designed on a special paper (it looked a lot like a map) and the holes were punched in "cards." This concept was very similar to our first computers' punched cards or the rolls for a player piano.

The quilts. The quilts of the Alling Coverlet Museum come from many different sources with as many different designs and makers. Quilting expert, Betty Alderman is currently in charge of displaying the quilts found in the quilt room. The art of quilting can be considered sentimental and considered works of art. One interesting quilt found in this collection is the quilt made by the fourth and fifth grade Palmyra Elementary classes. This quilt is comprised of 51 squares. Each of the 50 squares of the quilt are signed by the governors of all 50 states. The center square is signed by President Clinton.

Betty Alderman.Info coming soon...

Merle Alling. Info coming soon...

Mrs. Agnes Griffith. Info coming soon...

Ira Hadsell. Info coming soon...

James VanNess. Info coming soon...

Margaret Smith. Info coming soon...

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