QUILT INDEX RECORD
33-29-69
Description of quilt:
This Blazing Star quilt won first place in Seattle region.
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. Entered by Rose White of Clarkston, WA won first place in the Seattle region with a traditional pattern. However, she included motifs linked to the Century of Progress theme in the quilting designs in the open areas, in the borders and around the stars, hoping to win an extra $200 prize for it being linked to the Century of Progress theme of the Fair.
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:
063
Alternate inventory control number:
72.19.1
Person filling out this form is:
Author/researcher
Source of the information on this quilt:
Quilt Historian/Nancy Rowley
When was the form filled out?
1982
Choose the best description of the source to the quilt:
Other
Describe the relationship to the quilt's maker:
Quilt Historian documented the quilt for the Latah County Historical Society Museum
This is a:
Finished quilt
Quilt's title:
The Chicago Fair Quilt
Names for quilt's pattern in common use:
Blazing Star
How wide is the quilt?
71 inches
How long is the quilt?
81 inches
What color is the quilt?
Cream; Gold; Green; Lavender; Pink; Yellow
Overall color scheme:
Light or pastel colors
Type of inscription:
Date
What is inscribed on the quilt?
SEARS 1933
Method used to make the inscription:
In the quilting
Location of inscription:
other
Describe where the inscription was found:
At center of quilt
Time period:
1930-1949
When was the quilt finished?
1933
Describe the quilt's layout:
Block pattern
Subject of the quilt:
Century of Progress
Fiber types used to make the quilt top:
Silk
Fabric styles used in the quilt top:
Solid/plain
Piecing techniques used to make the quilt top:
Hand Piecing
Describe the techniques used to make the quilt top:
The semi-scalloped edge is bound with a separate binding pieced of the star colors and then bound by hand.
What color is the back of the quilt?
Cream
How are the layers held together?
Hand quilting
Quilting designs used, overall motifs:
Other
Quilting designs used, decorative motifs:
Other
Describe the quilting designs used:
Center: U. S. Capitol Building with the words "SEARS" below "CHICAGO 1933. Top Border: two sail boats, battle ship, hot air balloon, Zeppelin. Side Borders: Floral motifs Bottom: Ox cart, covered wagon, buggy, train, car and bus. Surrounding the center on white blocks: lamp, lantern, airplane, automobile, radio, phone, telephone, candle. Other areas: floral motifs.
Features or notes about the quilt's appearance, materials, or construction:
According to the quilt documenter, Nancy Rowley, the quilting is 10-12 stitches per inch with white thread.
Quilt top made by:
White, Rose
Quilted by:
White Rose
Where the quilt was made, city:
Clarkston
Where the quilt was made, state:
Washington (WA)
Where the quilt was made, country:
United States
How was this quilt acquired?
Gift
Describe anything about the history of the quilt that wasn't already recorded in a previous field:
The quilt was donated in 1972 by the quiltmaker, Rose White.
Why was the quilt made?
Challenge or Contest entry
Quilt is presently used as:
Museum collection
Where did the maker get their materials?
Purchased new
Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:
This quilt was exhibited at the Sears Pavilion on the Chicago World's Fair site in 1933 and 1934. It was also exhibited at several shows within Latah County, ID and in an exhibit at the Latah Historical Society in 1982.
Contests entered:
Sears National Quilt Contest, 1933 Chicago World's Fair. Won First Prize in the Seattle Regional Round and went on to the national round of judging in Chicago.
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), 108.
Related items such as diaries, obituaries, wills, household inventories, or pictures of the quiltmaker:
The caption card, presumably made when the quilt was on exhibit at the Latah County Historical Society in 1982, reads: "This all-handmade quilt was designed and made by Mrs. M. W. White, Clarkston, Washington, especially for the Sears Century of Progress Contest-Chicago, 1933. "2533 pieces of all-spun silk, and 1100 yards of thread were used in the work. The center and border designs depict the progress made in lighting, voice transmission, and land, water and air transportation."
Ownership of this quilt is:
Public Museum, Library or Institution
Quilt owner's name:
Latah County Historical Society
Quilt owner's city:
Moscow
Quilt owner's state:
Idaho (ID)
Quilt owner's country:
United States
Quiltmaker's gender:
Female
In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?
Rural
Quiltmaker's city:
Clarkston
Quiltmaker's state:
Washington (WA)
Quiltmaker's country:
United States
Access and copyright information:
Restricted
Cite this Quilt
White, Ros. The Chicago Fair Quilt. 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=33-29-69. Accessed: 03/28/24
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Gallery
Sears Quilt Contest 03: First Place Wi...
Waldvogel, Merikay