Meet Three Research Assistants Who Traced Women’s Stories From State Fairs to the Smithsonian Institution

Three research assistants spent years scouring archives, interviewing artists and conducting historical research to uncover women’s stories from state fairs. Their discoveries are now on display in the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery

The American Women’s History Initiative Pool (AWHIP), administered by the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum, supports research, collections, and programming across the Smithsonian Institution, effectively weaving women’s stories throughout existing museum spaces. One such thread can be found within the Renwick Gallery’s exhibition State Fairs: Growing American Craft, on display from August 22, 2025, to September 7, 2026. This exhibition is the first of its kind to highlight artists’ contributions to state fairs across the country, from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.

When state fairs first emerged in the United States, they provided gentlemen farmers with opportunities to display and promote their livestock. Building on this idea, some fairs began hosting livestock competitions, offering cash prizes to participating farmers. Initially, these competitions, and state fairs in general, were primarily male-dominated spaces. Women ultimately claimed their space at state fairs by exhibiting domestic products in their own organized competitions.

While creative pursuits such as needlework, quilting, and canning have historically been underrecognized in traditional museum spaces, the Renwick Gallery aims to highlight women’s contributions to state fair history and American craft. In support of the exhibition, AWHIP awarded funds to hire a contracted research assistant to collaborate with curator Mary Savig to survey and study objects that would enhance the exhibition. Over the course of the project, the Renwick Gallery received two additional awards from AWHIP to support a total of five research assistants and enrich the project with a broader range of perspectives.

Through field research, archival research, and direct engagement with artists, the three research assistants highlighted below uncovered objects and stories that deepen our understanding of women’s contributions to state fairs and American craft. Their research not only helped shape the exhibition but continues to advance scholarship beyond the show’s debut.

From Storage to Spotlight

Starting in 2023, Sara Morris was the first research assistant to support exhibition development. Morris traveled to colleges, universities, historical societies, and state fairs across the United States to survey and study objects related to women's contributions to state fair history.

According to Morris, many of the women who participated in state fair craft competitions were not recognized as professional artists, making it difficult to identify and locate them. To address this challenge, Morris located primary sources and conducted countless hours of research through cold calls, emails, online investigation, and field work, including visits to state fair sites. Some of these state fairs maintained catalogs documenting award-winning artworks which provided important details about artists’ identities and contributions.

After repeatedly encountering the same names throughout California State Fair’s catalogs, Morris visited the fair’s art collection in an on-site storage unit. There she discovered an uncatalogued collection of ceramics by Katherine Po-yu Choy and Ruth Rippon. Both artists entered competitions at the California State Fair in the mid-1900s and won awards in their respective categories. Morris’ discovery brought this previously uncatalogued collection into the public view, and the works are now displayed at the Renwick Gallery representing women’s artistic contributions to the California State Fair.

Rooted in Tradition

In 2024, Elizabeth Smith began working as the next research assistant for the exhibition. With much of the initial field research completed by her predecessor, Sara Morris, Smith’s research primarily focused on locating and interviewing artists to develop a deeper understanding of the women who have participated in state fairs. These conversations provided critical context for the objects in the exhibition, offering personal narratives that expand the historical record.

During this phase of research, Smith interviewed Kaye D. Miller, whose hooked rug is featured in the exhibition. Through conversation, Smith gained invaluable insight into Miller’s life and craft. Miller was first introduced to rug hooking while attending a state fair, where she viewed a hooked rug on display and became curious about how it was made. Determined to learn more, she enrolled in a class and ultimately developed a passion for the craft. More than fifteen years later, Miller’s commitment to rug hooking continues, sustained by a strong sense of community. Every Thursday, she meets with the Buffalo Trace Rug Hookers, a multigenerational group of women who gather to work and share techniques. Miller describes these weekly meetings as “where friendships are made.”

Miller emphasized the importance of preserving the practice of rug hooking, citing the activity as both a hobby and an art form. The rug featured in State Fairs: Growing American Craft took about a year to complete and was submitted for competition at the 2019 Kentucky State Fair, where it received “Best in Show.” Her work reflects both her technical skill and her commitment to keeping the tradition alive.

Threads of Knowledge

As the final research assistant to support the exhibition and an educator herself, Sarah Rogers Morris felt a strong connection to artists featured in the exhibition who combined their artistic practice with teaching. For many artists, state fairs serve as educational venues, providing opportunities to demonstrate their craft to a wide range of audiences. For these reasons, when tasked with drafting an article featuring a woman artist who participated in state fairs, Rogers Morris was interested in studying Valborg “Mama” Gravander.

Gravander, whose rug is featured in the exhibition, was more than just a prize-winning artist. Through her research, Rogers Morris found a common thread between herself and the artist: a passion for educating. Gravander was an educator who taught spinning and weaving, and she shared her Swedish culture with others through her craft. She taught in her studio on a hillside she and husband called Ekbacken, a word spelled out on the featured rug. Through spinning and weaving demonstrations at state fairs, Gravander found opportunities to recruit new students to her teaching practice.

Working as a research assistant for the exhibition has sparked new research opportunities for Rogers Morris. She recently traveled to Ekbacken to review a robust archive of material while preparing to author a book chapter about Gravander’s school for an upcoming volume on craft education.

Planting Seeds

The State Fairs: Growing American Craft exhibition is just one example of the scholarship made possible through American Women’s History Initiative Pool funding. Through administering these funds, the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum plants seeds across the Smithsonian Institution and within broader academic communities. Each year, the program supports projects that advance research, expand scholarship, and uncover new stories of American women. To explore current and upcoming exhibitions supported by AWHIP funds, please visit our Events page.

References

Linda J. Borish, “‘A Fair, Without the Fair, Is No Fair at All’: Women at the New England Agricultural Fair in the Mid-Nineteenth Century.” Journal of Sport History 24, no. 2 (1997): 155–76.

Related Reading:

• For This Prize-Winning Swedish Weaver in California, Craft Was Intertwined With Culture—and Cookies
• How State Fairs Got Their Start and Kept Growing
• How the American Women’s History Initiative Pool Lays the Groundwork for a New Museum