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The Chicago Fair Quilt; Blazing Star

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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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