1809 Sampler by Gertrude Nash

According to records at the Follett House Museum, this sampler was handstitched by Gertrude Nash in 1809. Gertrude Nash was an early resident of southern Ohio. Hewson Peeke wrote in his book A Standard History of Erie County that Gertrude’s maternal grandfather, Major Horton, served in the Revolutionary War. In 1818, Gertrude married a Mr. Cook, who died young. She later married Henry Clay Victor, who was once a tavern keeper in Erie County, Ohio. One of the sons of Henry Clay and Gertrude Nash Victor, Orville James Victor, became a well known author and editor. Henry Clay Victor and his family lived in Erie County, Huron County, and Seneca County. By 1860, Gertrude was a widow, and she moved back to Sandusky, Ohio. Gertrude Nash Victor died in 1882, and she is buried in Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery.