Mary Treen

Signed, “Mary Treen Rugby 1834,” this sampler features a wonderful aphorism, “Frugality and industry are the hands of fortune.” This was published by Benjamin Franklin, which we, as Philadelphians, greatly appreciate of course.

Rugby is a town east of Birmingham, close to the River Avon. It is most famous for the invention of rugby football. The first rugby game is credited to William Webb Ellis, a Rugby School pupil who, according to legend, broke the existing rules of football by picking up the ball and running with it at a match played in 1823.

Mary Treen was born in 1822, the 4th of 8 children of Jonathan and Mary (Perkins) Treen who were married in Rugby in 1813. She would have been 12 years old when she made this sampler. The family also had ties to the nearby town of Brinklow. In 1859, Mary married John Walker, a blacksmith, and they had at least 4 children. She died in 1885.

Along with alphabets, a numerical progression and the aphorism, the sampler features a central fruit tree flanked by pine trees and flower baskets. An unusual, large moth and more flower branches embellish the lower register. 

The sampler was worked in silk on linen and is in excellent condition. It has been conservation mounted and is in its fine, original maple frame with a gilt liner.