String Plate Quilt, Ethel West Adair, Cherokee, c. 1945,

Oklahoma
Cotton, 67” x 84.5”

Cherokee quiltmaker Ethel West Adair was born in 1901 in Wagner Prairie in what was then known as “Indian Territory.” She was married to Mack Adair Jr. for fifty-six years and had eight children who survived infancy. Her early life was spent in Oklahoma, where she later returned with her husband in retirement. In 1941 or 1942, Ethel moved to California, where she became a nurse’s aide. Following her husband’s death in 1986, Ethel moved to Arizona, and finally settled in California to be near her children.
At her home in Oklahoma, Ethel had a ceiling frame that she could raise and lower for quilting. When the weather was warm, the frame was sometimes moved to a veranda. Many long hours creating family treasures were accumulated while at the frame. Ethel stitched quilts for all of her immediate family and many of her grandchildren.