Dressing for the 1800’s ball
Gretchen Guidess, Textile Conservator with Colonial Williamsburg, spent a day at the History Museum of Western Virginia dressing a manikin in an early 1800s gown worn by Ann Cary Selden Breckinridge of Botetourt County at a Congressional Ball in Washington, D. C.. Ann Breckinridge’s husband James served in the House of Representatives from 1809 to 1817.
The dress, on loan from the collection of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, was a highlight of the just-ended “250+1 Years of Delight” exhibit at the museum. Its inclusion in the exhibit was supported through the generosity of a group of Roanoke Valley women informally dubbed the “Red Dress Society” by its leader Natalie Norris, museum events chair. The supporters are Michelle Petrus, Joan Petrus, Brenda Greene, Susan Amos, Jackie Phillips, Dee Harrison, Natalie Norris and Virginia Vineyard.
The brilliant red color of this garment’s imported, Indian-embroidered cotton signals a growing departure from the ubiquitous all-white neoclassic gowns in the early years of the 19th century. The yellow cotton embroidery, worked on flat panels before the gown was constructed, was planned especially for the intended shape of the garment. It centers at the front of the skirt and continues around the back to edge the hem. Narrower bands of needlework also trim the neckline and puffed sleeves.
When the exhibit ended, a representative from Preservation, and Historic Resources, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, returned to Roanoke to pack the dress for return the dress to its museum. The “Red Dress” women supported her visits and the loan fee for the dress.
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