A quilt made by the one of the oldest ongoing clubs in Austin has made its way back to town after 105 years.

Members of the Austin Floral Club, a group formed in 1869, completed a 76 x 95.5 inch quilt in 1897.

About 80 years later a woman in Washington state purchased the quilt at an estate auction along with three other quilts in a box.

Last week the woman, Mary Strate, returned the quilt to the town it was made in, dropping it off with Shirley DeYoung of the Mower County Historical Society.

That it found its way back after so many years is great, DeYoung said. But that it looks almost new is even more amazing, she said.

"To think something so precious is saved and in this condition," she said.

The quilt has never been washed, but there are no stains or tears in it.

The light beige quilt is embroidered with floral motifs, which were used on quilts such as this in that era, according to the historical society. The quilt is called a "Signature" or "Friendship" quilt, which were made for friends, family or sometimes for fund raisers.

On each square are the names or initials of club members along with book titles and their authors. In all, 60 names of club members are stitched onto the squares, as well as 20 names of members who had died.

DeYoung hopes relatives of the women who made this quilt are still in Austin so they can see the work of their ancestors.

DeYoung said they have no way of knowing how the quilt ended up in Washington. She said Strate has wanted to return the quilt to Austin for about four years and finally found time to do so this year.

Strate knew it was from Austin because the women had embroidered "Austin Floral Club" on one of the squares. Strate contacted Austin, Texas, and Austin, N.Y., before she heard about Austin, Minn.

When Strate read off the names stitched into the quilt to DeYoung, she immediately recognized names like K. O. Wold and Helen Ellis.

The Austin Floral Club is actually a book club that sold plants and flowers to raise money for books to start a library. The club is still active today, although it does not sell flowers any longer. The group works mostly with the Austin Public Library.

Floral Club members Beth Johnson, Grace Conway and Marietta Hardy had not heard about the quilt as of Friday, but Conway, the club's historian, said she was going to check the meeting minutes from 1897 in the club's records.

DeYoung said the historical society plans to display the quilt in the main building behind a piece of glass. She hopes people of all ages will find value in the it.

The quilt is an example of the way life was then, DeYoung said, and it shows "the closeness of people, the togetherness where there isn't now."

Cari Quam can be reached at 434-2235 or by e-mail at cari.quam@austindailyherald.com