I have thought about this, too. But if the folks before us did these quilts as a way to show their creativity, they would have used whatever tools they had. My grandmother didn't have a rotary cutter, but I am sure if she had a way to cut quicker and in an exacting way, she would have used whatever was available to her.
And for that matter it is possible lots of folks would never have discovered quilting if not for the modern updates that have made more patterns available, computers for info, new dyes that make the colors more stable, and plenty more.