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Century of Progress - World Without End

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QUILT INDEX RECORD

33-29-23

Description of quilt:

The quilt Century of Progress-World Without End is an original design submitted by Chicagoan Aurora See Dyer. It did not win a prize in the 1933 contest, but Waldvogel and Brackman chose it as the signature quilt for the Patchwork Souvenirs exhibit where it was used for the cover design of the book and exhibit brochure.

Essay:

The 1933 Sears National Quilt Contest was announced in January 1933 with a deadline of May 15, 1933. Over 24,000 quilts were entered at local Sears stores or sent to one of 10 regional mail order houses. Quilts were judged at each site with the top three winners moving onto the next round. Finally just 30 quilts reached the final judging held at the Sears Pavilion on the 1933 Chicago World's Fair site. Many quilters spent extra time researching and designing a quilt that would exlemplify the spirit of the Century of Progress theme -- a birthday celebration, an historical review of technology and architure, and a hopeful image of the return to brighter, more healthy economic times. Although the quilt was not exhibited at the 1933 Fair, a special exhibit of the themed quilts was organized by Sears staff for the 1934 re-opening of the Fair. A b/w photo of the quilts on display in 1934 shows the edge of this quilt--proof that the quilt was displayed then.

Where are the records for this quilt housed?

Merikay Waldvogel Legacy Project

Who documented this quilt?

Merikay Waldvogel Legacy Project; Sears Quilt Contest 1933 Chicago World's Fair

Merikay Waldvogel Legacy Project Number:

095

Person filling out this form is:

Blood relative of quiltmaker

When was the form filled out?

1992

Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:

Quilt owner

If you are the quilt owner, how did you acquire this quilt?

Inherited

Who helped you fill out the form?

Merikay Waldvogel

Location of data collection:

Waldvogel Collection

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Century of Progress - World Without End

How wide is the quilt?

70 inches

How long is the quilt?

80 inches

What color is the quilt?

Gold; Green; Lavender; Red

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

What is inscribed on the quilt?

The official contest entry label includes contest entry information: Name of Maker. Pattern Name, When Quilt Was Made, Selling Price if willing to sell, Quilter's Name, Address, City and State, Sears Store Name/Number. Entry label also included the following statement: "I certify that this quilt is entirely of my own making, and that it has never been exhibited previously" to which the quilter signed her name. Mrs. Edgar R. Dyer "Century of Progress" combined with "World Without End" Made: March 1933 to May 1933. Mrs. Edgar R. Dyer 7041 Parnell Av. Chicago Illinois

What is the date inscribed on the quilt?

1933

Method used to make the inscription:

Attached label

Time period:

1930-1949

When was the quilt started?

March 1933

When was the quilt finished?

May 1933

Family/owner's date for quilt:

1933

Date estimated by an antique dealer, quilt historian or appraiser:

1933

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Subject of the quilt:

Chicago History 1833 - 1933

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Solid/plain

Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Piecing

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Echo; Outline; Patches outlined/in the ditch

Quilt top made by:

Dyer, Aurora See

Quilted by:

Dyer, Aurora See

Where the quilt was made, city:

Chicago

Where the quilt was made, county:

Cook

Where the quilt was made, state:

Illinois (IL)

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Inheritance

Why was the quilt made?

Challenge or Contest entry

Quilt is presently used as:

Keepsake/memento

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Provided in a class

Where did the quiltmaker find the pattern for the quilting design on the quilt?

Original to maker

Describe anything about the design of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:

Two design sketches for the layout of the quilt remain with the family.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

This quilt was selected for the travelling exhibition of 30 quilts entitled “Patchwork Souvenirs of the 1933 World’s Fair” was curated by Merikay Waldvogel and Barbara Brackman. The Knoxville Museum of Art and Smith-Kramer, Inc. coordinated the travelling exhibition to the following sites: Jan 7-Feb 7, 1994 Palm Beach, FL (The Society of the Four Arts); Mar 20-July 17, 1994 Lexington, MA (Museum of Our National Heritage); Aug 7–Sep 25, 1994 Midland, MI (Midland Center for the Arts); Oct 16–Dec 4, 1994 Logan, KS (Dane G. Hansen Memorial Museum; Dec 18, 1994–Apr 23, 1995 Chicago, IL (Chicago Cultural Center); May 10-Jul 2, 1995 Grosse Pointe Shores, MI (Edsel and Eleanor Ford House); Jul 23-Sep 10, 1995 Los Angeles, CA (Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum); Oct 1-Nov 19, 1995 Janesville, WI (Rock County Historical Society); Dec 10, 1995-Jan 28, 1996 Neenah, WI (Bergstrom-Mahler Museum); Feb 18-Apr 8, 1996 Lexington, KY (University of Kentucky Art Museum); May 3-July 24, 1996 Knoxville, TN (Knoxville Museum of Art). The quilt was also included in an exhibit at Rosemont, IL curated by Merikay Waldvogel for International Quilt Festival. "Patterns of Lives: Cultural Diversity and American Quilts" at Riverside (CA) Municpal Museum, January-April 1992. Curator: Brenda Buller Focht.

Contests entered:

Sears National Quilt Contest, 1933 Chicago World's Fair

Publications (including web sites) where this quilt or maker was featured:

Merikay Waldvogel and Barbara Brackman. Patchwork Souvenirs of the 1933 World's Fair (Nashville, TN: Rutledge Hill Press, 1993), p. frontice page and p. xvi.

Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:

A photo of the quiltmaker in 1960 is on pg xiv of Patchwork Souvenirs. The contest entry label and two sketches of the quilt design are with the quilt.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

See

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

1895

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

1969

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Urban

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:

Postal Worker

Quiltmaker's county:

Cook

Quiltmaker's city:

Chicago

Quiltmaker's state:

Illinois (IL)

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

In 1933 Aurora Dyer was president of the Cook County Women's Christian Temperance Union. The organization planned a booth at the fair. With her club work and the making of her Sears Contest quilt, the family anticipated the opening of the fair with enthusiasm. Her son Robert remembers the making of the quilt. His mother had a frame set up in a second floor bedroom. "We never got dinner that spring," he joked about her determination to win the contest. The colors are an unuausal combination, but she was going for the "modern" look. The quilt won a green ribbon of honorable mention award at the Chicago staore contest. According to her son John, Aurora grew up in Hersher, Illinois near Kankakee. She went to school with Adlai Stevenson. Then she went to Illinois State for a teaching degree. She met her husband at the USO at a pavilion at the end of Navy Pier in Chicago. Her husband worked for the Post Office, and so did Aurora for ten years after her children had left home. They had 4 sons and 3 daughters. They retired and moved to California in 1955. Youngest son, John, was a teenager when they went to California. Aurora was interested in entering contests.

Who photographed this quilt?

Gary Heatherly

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Merikay Waldvogel

Cite this Quilt

Dyer, Aurora Se. Century of Progress - World Without End. May 1933. From Merikay Waldvogel Legacy Project, Merikay Waldvogel Legacy Project; Sears Quilt Contest 1933 Chicago World's Fair. Published in The Quilt Index, https://quiltindex.org/view/?type=fullrec&kid=33-29-23. Accessed: 03/29/24

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