This cross-stitch sampler was embroidered on linen by 8-year-old Susan Graybill. Her name is spelled “Sussan Krebil” and can be clearly seen along with the date of 1798. She lived from 1790 to 1850 and was married to Daniel Arnold (1773-1843). They are buried in Old Graybill Cemetery on the Jonas Graybill farm near Gravel Hill. Her father John Graybill was married to Hannah Borndecker. Her sampler was given to the Botetourt History Museum by her great-grandchildren P.A., Betty and Clara Firebaugh in 1979. By the 1700s, samplers depicting alphabets and numerals were worked by young women to practice various embroidery stitches and motifs. These basic needlework skills were needed to operate the family household. They were not made as a hobby or as a way to pass leisure time.
~ Botetourt County History Museum
