QUILT INDEX RECORD
33-29-66
Description of quilt:
Century of Progress quilt made in Tennessee.
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. This quilt made in East Tennessee many miles from the epicenter of excitement about the Chicago World's Fair still contains many images common to those from the Upper Midwest. Her pieced rendition of red and yellow airplanes pointed toward the center of the quilt is original. Putting the Sears Pavilion prominently in the center of her quilt is something other Century of Progress quilt designers also did. The family still owns the Sears Contest brochure that includes an illustration of the Sears Pavilion's white tower. She traced the image and used it for her applique design. She won a green merit ribbon. It is not known which store or mail order house she sent her quilt to. The quiltmaker Addie Swofford Robnette of Pikeville, TN had previously entered an earlier national quilt contest The Eastern States Storrowton Contest in Massachusetts.
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:
153
Person filling out this form is:
Daughter of quiltmaker; Quilt owner
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
This is a:
Finished quilt
Quilt's title:
Sears Building
What color is the quilt?
Cream; Pink; Red; Yellow
Overall color scheme:
Bright or primary colors
Type of inscription:
Date
Describe the type of inscription:
Appliqued
What is the date inscribed on the quilt?
1933
Location of inscription:
other
Describe where the inscription was found:
On front above the Sears Building
Time period:
1930-1949
When was the quilt started?
1933
When was the quilt finished?
1933
Describe the quilt's layout:
Medallion or framed center
Subject of the quilt:
Century of Progress in Transportation
Fiber types used to make the quilt top:
Cotton
Fabric styles used in the quilt top:
Solid/plain
Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Applique
How are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:
Other
Describe the quilting designs used:
Buildings (cabins) and Transportation (sailing ships, dirigibles, covered wagons)
Quilt top made by:
Robnette, Addie
Quilted by:
Robnette, Addie
Where the quilt was made, city:
Pikeville
Where the quilt was made, state:
Tennessee (TN)
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?
Original to maker
Where did the quiltmaker find the pattern for the quilting design on the quilt?
Original to maker
Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:
Tennessee Bicentennial Celebration/Bledsoe County Quilt Airing and Show, June 1994.
Contests entered:
Sears Quilt Contest, 1933 Chicago World's Fair
Ownership of this quilt is:
Private
Quilt owner's country:
United States
Quiltmaker's maiden name:
Swofford
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Rural
Quiltmaker's city:
Pikeville
Quiltmaker's state:
Tennessee (TN)
Quiltmaker's country:
United States
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
Copyright holder:
Merikay Waldvogel
Cite this Quilt
Robnette, Addi. Sears Building. 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=33-29-66. Accessed: 03/28/24