QUILT INDEX RECORD

33-29-82

Description of quilt:

The quiltmaker of this quilt is not known, but the obvious links to the Chicago World's Fair theme "A Century of Progress" is evidence that the quilt was made as a contest entry. To encourage quiltmakers to experiment with designs, the contest organizers at Sears Roebuck & Co. offered a bonus prize of $250. Several people took the challenge, but the $250 was not awarded.

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.

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:

018

Person filling out this form is:

Quilt owner; Quilt collector

When was the form filled out?

1983

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

Purchased the quilt

Who helped you fill out the form?

Barbara Brackman

Location of data collection:

Waldvogel Collection

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Century of Progress

How wide is the quilt?

77 inches

How long is the quilt?

88 inches

What color is the quilt?

Blue or Navy; Orange; White

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

Time period:

1930-1949

When was the quilt started?

1933

When was the quilt finished?

1933

Further information concerning dates:

Contest was announced in Jan 1933.

Describe the quilt's layout:

Medallion or framed center

Subject of the quilt:

History of Transportation at the Century of Progress Exposition

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Blanket, buttonhole, or other decorative applique stitch; Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Other

Quilting designs used, background fills:

Other

Describe the quilting designs used:

Background is quilted in "sun rays" that radiate from the sun behind the central white building. Quilting is also used to highlight features on the pavilion building and in the transportation motifs.

Quilt top made by:

Unknown

Quilted by:

Unknown

Where the quilt was made, country:

United States

How was this quilt acquired?

Purchase

Why was the quilt made?

Challenge or Contest entry

Where did the maker get their materials?

Purchased new

Where did the maker find their pattern?

Original to maker

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

The white building is the Sears Pavilion at the Chicago World's Fair. A b/w photo of the pavilion on the contest brochure was probably the source for this applique building design. Look for the same design in other "theme" quilts made for the contest.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

This quilt was part of a travelling exhibition of 30 quilts entitled “Patchwork Souvenirs of the 1933 World’s Fair” 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).

Contests entered:

The 1933 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), pg 93.

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

Photo ofthe Contest entry brochure is on pg 93 in Patchwork Souvenirs.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Who photographed this quilt?

Gary Heatherly

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Merikay Waldvogel