The history of American samplers begins in 17th-century New England. Consistent with the painting and decorative arts of this period, the designs are virtually indistinguishable from their British counterparts. By the 1720s, regional interpretations can be perceived in the embroideries from Boston, Newport, and Philadelphia. Of these, the most well-known is a group produced in Rhode Island, notably at the school Mary Balch established in Providence about 1782. The formulaic composition that distinguishes this group consists of a domestic or public structure flanked by figures, creatures, and foliage. Often, a verse is incorporated into the sampler, and frequently the scene is framed by paired columnar structures as the perimeter of the sampler is defined by a meandering garland of flowers. 

Closely related to the Balch school needlework is a group of embroideries fashioned in nearby Warren, Rhode Island, under the tutelage of Martha Pease Davis (c. 1743–1806) and dating between 1793 and 1803. This sampler is one of the earliest from this school and is signed by Joanna Maxwell who may have also authored the acrostic verse. Born in 1782, it is known that she was raised in the house built by her grandfather, the Reverend Samuel Maxwell, which today is the Warren Historical Society.