This extraordinary quilt might be considered the definitive example on a Baltimore album quilt, a textile album of fabric blocks made or signed by a recipient’s friends and relatives. This quilt was made by those dearest to Samuel Williams (1769–1847), a Baltimore grocer and Methodist preacher. The difficulty of the design and the quality of the workmanship displayed in its 42 signed blocks range from modest to accomplished. Among the most sophisticated blocks are those which relate directly to the history of Baltimore: a steam engine with a railroad car resembling one used by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; a funerary urn encircled by a laurel wreath honoring Colonel William H. Watson, who fought in the Mexican-American War; and the Baltimore Battle Monument erected to commemorate the bombardment of Fort McHenry and the Battle of North Point in 1814. In addition there are elaborate floral baskets and fruit compotes, chintz appliqué bouquets, and various wreaths. Joining these are more simpler flower pots, floral sprays, animals, and two-colored floral and pineapple cut-paper motifs. This vast range of Baltimore album quilt block embroidery is unified through a brilliantly executed appliquéd border with triple undulating floral vines. Among the signatures appearing on this quilt are those of Samuel Williams’s second wife, Maria Wehner Williams, whom he married in 1833; his stepdaughter Mary Ann Wehner O’Laughlen; and step-grandchildren Maria Kate, Michael, and Samuel Williams O’Laughlen. Other signatories were associated with Williams through marriage, business partnerships, the Methodist Church, friendships, and as neighbors. Completed after his death, the quilt remained a tribute honoring Williams’s lifetime of service on behalf of his church and community. His family treasured it for generations before donating it to the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1988.