For July's Quilt of the Month, we are sharing this patriotic quilt from the Sue Reich Collection.

This striking quilt features a depiction of an American flag with 48 stars reflective of the number of states admitted to the union at the time with quilt was made — Hawaii and Alaska were added in 1959. The flag is unevenly bordered with fabric from a flag representing the Army-Navy Excellence in Production Award.

Created in 1942, the “E” award was used to denote high-level production contributions during World War II. And though every participating factory was eligible for the award, the designation was exclusive — only five percent of factories received the “E” award, according to the Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy.

This quilt is part of the Sue Reich Collection of World War I and World War II quilts. Reich is a renowned collector, historian and author. The quilts came to the International Quilt Museum in 2021 as a gift of the Robert and Ardis James Foundation. 

A virtual tour of last year’s exhibition “World War I Quilts: The Sue Reich Collection” is available here.  

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Flag

Maker Unidentified 

Circa 1945; made in the United States 

Cotton; hand quilted, machine appliquéd

IQM 2021.108.0056