Each woman who hooked a portion of this rug was born and lived in Caledonia/South Brookfield area of Nova Scotia. Adelaide (Crooker) Telfer (1892-1985) and daughter-in-law, Leona (Gorman) Telfer (1932-2007) attempted hooking this rug however, after a few rows, decided to put the rug away for awhile. Adelaide decided to pick it up again later in life, when she was in her 80’s.
Adelaide’s granddaughter, Jean, learned how to rug hook from a friend while living in Calgary, Alberta around a table in Lucille Roxburgh’s basement in 1985 and is still rug hooking today.
The “T” you see in each of the 4 corners of this floral rug stands for “Telfer”, a proud Scottish last name. Adelaide designed and hooked the “T” in each of the 4 corners as well as the first few rows of border. Leona hooked the next few rows of the borders. Jean then finished the borders, repaired a hole in the centre and edge of the rug and designed the floral motif. Jean finished the rug and also added a hanging rod and strapping to the back of the rug to preserve it.
As were many rugs back in the 1950’s, this rug is hooked with various materials including new and recycled materials, wool, knitted fabric and mixed materials on burlap backing. The edges are folded over to the back and stitched down. Twill tape is sewn along the outside edge along the back.
A real family heirloom.