Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

WEDDING OR EVENING

Date Range From

1900

Date Range To

1910

Materials

WOOL, COTTON

No. Pieces

1

Length

86.3

Width

43.0

Description

BLACK. SWALLOW TAIL STYLE MEN'S WEDDING COAT. LABEL "H.S.& M." 3 BUTTON, LINED. 1 BUTTON ON EACH CUFF, 3 BUTTONS ON FRONT. SEVERAL HOLES ON FRONT. 3 INSIDE POCKETS- 2 LARGE, 1 SMALL INSIDE POCKETS. INSIDE LINING IS WEARING.

Subjects

CLOTHING-OUTERWEAR

Historical Association

PERSONAL CARE

History

FRED ELFORD MARRIED IN EARLY 1900'S. HOMESTEADED IN BURDETT AREA. *UPDATE* IN 2016 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT RUTHANN LABLANCE CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF CLOTHING ARTICLES, INCLUDING FRED ELFORD’S WEDDING COAT. THE FOLLOWING BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION COMES FROM ARTICLES FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD AND “BURDETT PRAIRIE TRAILS: A HISTORY OF BURDETT AND AREA” PUBLISHED IN 1981 BY THE BURDETT HISTORY BOOK COMMITTEE. FRED R. ELFORD WAS BORN IN MITCHELL, ON ON OCTOBER 8, 1871 TO JONATHAN AND MARIA (NEE TILLEY) ELFORD. THE ELFORD FAMILY MOVED TO ROCHESTER, MN IN 1873. LATER, FRED AND HIS WIFE ADA (NEE KOELSCH) MOVED TO A FARM NEAR COGSWELL, ND. IN 1910 MANY MEMBERS OF THE ELFORD FAMILY, INCLUDING FRED, JOINED THE LONG LINES OF HOMESTEADERS AT THE LAND OFFICE BUILDING IN LETHBRIDGE. BY MARCH 1910, FRED WAS ABLE TO MOVE HIS FAMILY TO SOUTHERN ALBERTA. FRED AND ADA HAD 5 CHILDREN, RUTH (DIED 1917), ESTHER (BORN MARCH 31, 1905; DIED MAY 9, 2002), WESLEY (BORN 1909), DAVID (BORN MARCH 7, 1918; DIED JUNE 2, 1998), AND DORIS (BORN 1920). DAVID ELFORD MARRIED JOYCE LAVERNE (NEE NEWTON) ON NOVEMBER 30, 1942. THEIR DAUGHTER, THE DONOR, ELAINE WAS BORN IN SEPTEMBER 1943. ELAINE MARRIED KENNETH D. MARTIN IN SEPTEMBER 1969. SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR HARD COPIES OF THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES AND PHOTOCOPIES FROM THE BURDETT HISTORY BOOK. *UPDATE* IN 2018, GALT COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT ELISE PUNDYK CONDUCTED A RELEVANCY AUDIT OF THE MUSEUM’S BOXED TEXTILE COLLECTION WHICH INCLUDED THE EXAMINATION OF A RECORD FOR A WEDDING GOWN DONATED BY ELAINE MARTIN IN 1994. PUNDYK RE-CONNECTED WITH MARTIN ON APRIL 18TH 2018 TO SOLICIT NEW COMMENTS ON THE GOWN AS WELL AS NEW INFO ON OTHER EXISTING DONATIONS. WHEN ASKED IF SHE RECALLED THE ARTIFACT, ELAINE MARTIN SAID ”I REALLY DON’T. I’M GUESSING THAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SOMETHING THAT ESTHER WORE BECAUSE IN THOSE DAYS THERE WERE MORE FORMAL EVENTS, AND ESTHER, THIS IS AUNT ESTHER, WAS IN THE WRENS (WOMEN’S ROYAL NAVY SERVICE) AND THEY, IN THOSE DAYS THEY DID HAVE FORMAL EVENTS AND SHE WAS DOWN EAST SOMEWHERE WITH THEM. … FEMALE NAVY OFFICER. … IT MUST HAVE BEEN WORLD WAR I. … AND SHE WAS IN THE SIGNAL CORPS. SHE TRAVELLED A LOT. I KNOW THAT.” ON HER DECISION TO DONATE THE ARTIFACTS, “WHEN MY MOTHER DIED WE CLEANED OUT HER HOUSE. IN HER HOUSE WAS ALL HER STUFF PLUS SEVERAL GRANDMOTHER’S STUFF AND WE JUST TRIED TO FIND A PLACE WHERE IT WOULD BE BEST UTILIZED AND WE COULDN’T THROW IT OUT. …IT IS CERTAINLY NOTHING SENTIMENTAL. IT’S JUST PURELY PRACTICAL REPRESENTATIONS OF THE ERA BECAUSE TIMES HAVE CHANGED SO MUCH SO RAPIDLY, THAT I THINK WE NEED TO REMEMBER HOW THINGS WERE. WE’RE GOING TO HAVE A THOUSAND KIDS IN MAY AND JUNE COME THROUGH THE MUSEUM WITH THE TRACTOR CLUB IN PICTURE BUTTE ON FIELD TRIPS AND THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT PEOPLE USED TO LIVE IN TWO ROOM HOUSES WITH SEVERAL CHILDREN. THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT SCHOOLS USED TO HAVE A WATER PAIL AND A DIPPER, AND EVERYBODY DRANK OUT OF THE SAME DIPPER, SO KIDS NEED TO KNOW THAT THEY HAVE IT PRETTY DARN LUCKY.” FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, INCLUDING INTERVIEW AND INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT PLEASE SEE PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P19870048006

Acquisition Date

1987-11

Collection

Museum

Less detail