QUILT INDEX RECORD

33-29-19

Description of quilt:

Pictorial quilt depicting Fort Dearborn in 1833

Essay:

Several quilts documented used some sort of image of Fort Dearborn in their quilts to depict the 1833 beginnings of Chicago. This quilt also portrays the scene of the confrontation between Indians and soldiers protecting the Fort. This quilt did not win a prize in the contest, but the maker often used the quilt in her quilt lectures she gave in the years following the World's Fair. 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:

086

Person filling out this form is:

Blood relative of quiltmaker

When was the form filled out?

1992

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

Inherited

Who helped you fill out the form?

Waldvogel

This is a:

Finished quilt

Quilt's title:

Fort Dearborn Quilt (Green Merit Ribbon)

How wide is the quilt?

80 inches

How long is the quilt?

80 inches

What color is the quilt?

Brown; Green; White

Overall color scheme:

Bright or primary colors

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:

The seige of Fort Dearborn is depicted in this quilt. The scene shows Fort Dearborn, the white residents' log cabin just outside the fort, and Indians confront soldiers. Flying above the fort is an eage with outspread wings holding Chicago's flag--here with only two stars. A third star was added for the 1933 Exposition and remains the official city flag.

Fiber types used to make the quilt top:

Cotton

Fabric styles used in the quilt top:

Multiple scrap; Solid/plain

Applique techniques used to make the quilt top:

Hand Applique

Embellishment techniques used to make the quilt top:

Embroidery

How are the layers held together?

Hand quilting

Quilting designs used, overall motifs:

Grid square

Quilt top made by:

Fitzgerald, Mary O'Halloran

Quilted by:

Fitzgerald, Mary O'Halloran

Where the quilt was made, city:

Chicago

Where the quilt was made, county:

Cook

Where the quilt was made, state:

Illinois (IL)

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

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

Notice the layering of small strips of fabric to create realistic log buildings.

Exhibitions where this quilt was displayed:

This quilt was included in the nationally 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). Exhibited also at The Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum May and June 1997, "Houses in Quilts: The Fabric of Our Lives, Architectural Interpretations in Fabric." Also exhibited at Spring International Quilt Festival at Rosemont, IL April 11-13, 2003.

Contests entered:

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, pp. 84-86.

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

Newspaper clipping (Chicago Tribune May 1949: "Widow, 83, Sows Seeds of Art in Fancy Sewing: Puts Fort Dearborn on a Quilt" Photo of quiltmaker is on pg 84 of Patchwork Souvenirs.

Ownership of this quilt is:

Private

Quilt owner's country:

United States

Quiltmaker's maiden name:

O'Halloran

Quiltmaker's gender:

Female

Quiltmaker's birth date:

1866

Quiltmaker's date and place of death:

1957

In which kind of environment did the quiltmaker live?

Urban

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and /or partner's/partners' name(s):

Fitzgerald, Thomas

Quiltmaker's spouse's/spouses' and/or partner's/partners' occupation:

Police Officer

Quiltmaker's country:

United States

Estimated number of quilts made by this quiltmaker:

5-20 quilts

Any other notes or stories about the quiltmaker:

Mary O'Halloran was educated at a convent school in Rensselaer, Indiana. There she learned quilting, lace making, crewel, and needlepoint. After schooling, she took a job as a nanny. While walking the children in a park, she met a young police officer, Thomas Fitzgerald. They were married in 1892 and had three children of their own. In 1924 Mary Fitzgerald won a major contest in Aurora, Illinois with an applique quilt. Her Sears contest entry, Fort Dearborn, won a green ribbon of honorable mention at a Chicago store, but it was not among the finalists shown at the fair. Following the fair, she promoted quiltmaking by organizaing quiltign clubs in the Chicago area and lecturing about quilts.

Who photographed this quilt?

Gary Heatherly

Access and copyright information:

Restricted

Copyright holder:

Merikay Waldvogel