Album quilts of the mid-nineteenth century grew out of a fondness for autograph albums, a trend that is believed to predate the fabric examples in this quilt by approximately twenty years. By the 1840s, women were signing quilt blocks and sewing them together for a variety of reasons: to raise money for a charitable cause, to celebrate a particular event, to honor a distinguished member of the community, as a gift for a departing family member or friend, or simply as an expression of friendship and community. As yet the exact purpose for the making of the Cross River Album Quilt has not been determined; however, all eleven women who signed the quilt in 1861 have been located in historical records. All were probably related and lived within a mile or two of each other. They were of average means and ranged in age from fifteen to fifty-five.

There may have been a patriotic reason for making this quilt, which is dated "November 1st 1861" in the square signed by Eldad Miller. The year 1861 marked the start of the Civil War, and the Soldiers Aid Society was active in the area raising funds through private contributions, fairs, and entertainments. At the bottom center of the quilt is a block in a flag design that has been enhanced with the embroidered word "Union" and appliquéd stars. In June 1861, shortly before this quilt was dated, Peterson's Magazine printed a colored illustration for a red, white, and blue quilt in a very similar design under the caption "A Patriotic Quilt." The magazine was trying to inspire readers to quilt their Union sympathies, and this block points at least to patriotic feelings among the makers if not to a war-related purpose behind the construction of this bedcover.

Elizabeth V. Warren, "Cross River Album Quilt," in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 343-44.