When I had to write papers in college, it was typically something related to quilting if I could manage it... most of the time I could!
It's hard for us to imagine nowadays what an impact cotton fabric had on society -- it was a miracle fabric and led the development of the modern industrial world from early computing concepts to colonization to building of railroads to get the raw materials to the mills and from there to the people. I'd say the earliest quilts were mostly whole cloth/from large pieces. Chintz designs were cut apart and appliqued on wool or linen backgrounds to extend the rarity of the cotton chintz design. The idea of quilting (putting together multiple layers of fabric with stitching) has been around for 1000s of years. The idea of quilting as blankets is more a post-industrial revolution concept.
Much of what we use today in "modern" quilting was first developed by the Seminole peoples. They used sewing machines as soon as available and strip piecing methods for intricate designs, mostly used for clothing. While I divested most of my book collection when I moved, I did keep 2 books on Seminole piecing.
http://micanopyhistoricalsociety.com..._patchwork.htm
https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswi...-appropriation
While Log Cabins were being made before, they became popular during the Civil War Period - Abraham Lincoln being born in a log cabin and all that sort of stuff. Grandmother's fan was largely a later addition, from right around 1900, becoming popular during the 30s quilting revival. On the other hand, Baltimore Album (non strip!) were being made in the 1840s! At the same time frame, more "simple" designs like Boxed square large format were being developed by the Amish, along with other non-representational designs. Once available, early hand (and machine) quilters made use of paper piecing on newsprint or from the Sears Roebuck catalogs for narrow scraps either in log cabins or variations of string quilts, as well as English Paper piecing. The downside being having available paper.
Applique and crazy quilt ideas were able to use small scraps left from clothing construction or from less worn pieces from the actual clothing as it wore out. The idea of buying fabric just to cut it up to quilt with didn't happen for hundreds of years, it was just too valuable a commodity. Blankets and weaving came first.
My personal guess on early strip patterns is "brick work" that is, rows of rectangles or quite possible just simple squares. After that 4- or 9-patch options.