The sweet little clothes in this photo came in as an accession this week along with a scan of the photograph. This is Ruth Ann Feiste Roth and Roy Feiste. Their parents were Emma [Schade] and Delmar Feiste. Ruth has recently shared an accession of family textiles and other items. They will make a wonderful exhibit on the family, as well as a history of the clothing styles in the first half of the 20th Century.
I have had the pleasure of housing artifacts in our recent refurbishment of the archival storage. I have found myself quite moved by the memories of people who have donated their family treasures the past 16 years. Among the other textile accessions are many wedding veils. Some are housed in the special shadow box arrangements with the traditional German waxed wedding florals. Some of the veils are folded quite elaborately in the shadow boxes. I wish I knew more about this tradition. I adore the examples in our collection.
One beautiful wedding veil in the collection, from the Bergt family, has a little square cut from it. It was also a tradition for some families to cut a square from the wedding veil to place in the casket of an elderly, long-ago bride. I think it is a beautiful tradition. Also in our textile collection are: two black opaque mourning veils, wedding dresses, children’s clothing, early weaving, historic bedding, military uniforms, band uniforms, a baseball uniform, and wonderful doll clothing.
The childhood photo of Roy & Ruth—with a quilted frame made by their Mom—Emma—immediately warmed my heart. It spoke clearly of parental love, the closeness of siblings, and what a treasure studio family photography was in previous times. Families put on their Sunday best, and headed to the photography studio to document their lives. Is this still a common practice? I enjoy Instagram photos from family and friends, but by their nature they are fleeting. Comment, and post some photos of siblings in your family, please.
This is the photo of my brother, Brian and me that popped in my head when I saw the photo of Ruth and Roy. I’m happy our parents documented our lives in snap shots and in the photography studio.
Have a nice weekend. Please plan a trip to the Lutheran Heritage Center. We have so much to show you. Love, Carla Jordan
I too love the frame that Emma made for the picture of Ruth and Roy. Lots of creativity and patience. The pictures of you and Brian are sweet. Did your mom sew either of your outfits?
Will look forward to seeing your textile collection. Recently, I thought about wedding dresses worn by my Perry County ancestors. The black and white photos show some were white and many were a dark color. I did a little research about why not all were white and what the time period trends had been. Wedding practices over time are very interesting.