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Sears Building

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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