Material Type

Artifact

Date Range From

1900

Date Range To

1930

Materials

LINEN, LACE

No. Pieces

1

Length

146.5

Width

178

Description

OFF-WHITE LINEN DRESS IS FLOOR LENGTH WITH HIGH LACE COLLARET AND LEG-OF-MUTTON SLEEVES. LACE COLLAR HAS TINY SCALLOPED EDGES, SAME STYLE LACE APPEARS THROUGHOUT INSERTS. SLEEVES HAVE LACE INSERTS ON EITHER SIDE OF TINY RUFFLES IN SHAPE OF POINTED TAB FROM SHOULDER SEAM TO ELBOW. THEN HAS THREE HORIZONTAL LACE INSERTS EVENLY SPREAD OUT TO LACE CUFFS WITH POINT ON TOP OF BACK OF HAND. BODICE IS FITTED AND THEN WIDENS FROM WAIST DOWN. DOWN CENTRE IS FLORAL EYELET LACE INSERT WITH SCALLOPED EDGES. IS FRAMED ON EITHER SIDE BY TINY LINEN HORIZONTAL RUFFLES, WHICH ARE ALSO FRAMED BY LACE INSERTS WITH FRILLS ON THE OUTSIDE, RUN VERTICALLY. ANOTHER INSERT RUNS PARALLEL TO THIS ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE FRONT. THESE TWO OUTER LACE INSERTS DO NOT FALL TO THE FLOOR, THEY END TOWARDS THE BOTTOM AT A HORIZONTAL LACE INSERT. FROM THIS INSERT THE SKIRT FLARES WIDELY AND IS GATHERED BELOW LACE. BOTTOM IS SCALLOPED WITH FLORAL PATTERNED EYELET LACE TRIM. BACK IS SIMILAR WITHOUT THE EYELET LACE DOWN THE MIDDLE, INSTEAD IT OPENS DOWN THE MIDDLE BELOW THE BUTTOCKS. THIS FASTENS TOGETHER WITH 17 MOTHER-OF-PEARL TINY BUTTONS AND HOLES. AT BOTTOM OF OPENING ARE A FEW PLEATS. ON EITHER SIDE OF OPENING ARE THREE PARALLEL VERTICAL LACE INSERTS WITH THE TWO CLOSEST TO THE CENTRE HAVING A ROW OF HORIZONTAL LINEN RUFFLES FALLING DOWN SKIRT. HAS SOME RUST STAINS. LACE IS TORN AND WORN IN AREAS. IS SOME SOILING AT BOTTOM OF SKIRT. ARE A FEW TINY HOLES IN MATERIAL, HAS BEEN REPAIRED ALONG BUTTON LINE.

Subjects

CLOTHING-OUTERWEAR

Historical Association

DOMESTIC

History

BELONGED TO MRS. GEORGE THOMPSON AND HER MOTHER MARY KINNIBURGH. *UPDATE* IN 2016 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT RUTHANN LABLANCE CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF CLOTHING, INCLUDING AN APRON DONATED BY FRANK RUSSELL. THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION WAS COMPILED USING ARTICLES FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD AND “FADED TRAILS: GRASSY LAKE, PURPLE SPRINGS” BY THE GRASSY LAKE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. THE DONOR, FRANK RUSSELL, IS THE SON OF FREDERICK “FRED” ALEXANDER AND CYNTHIA MAE (NEE THOMPSON) RUSSELL. FRED WAS BORN ON FEBRUARY 3, 1898, THE FIFTH SON OF GEORGE AND ISABELLA RUSSELL, EARLY LETHBRIDGE PIONEERS. HE MARRIED CYNTHIA ON JULY 14, 1930 AND TOGETHER THEY FARMED SOUTH OF LETHBRIDGE, WHERE HIS FAMILY HAS OWNED LAND SINCE 1886. CYNTHIA WAS BORN SEPTEMBER 3, 1910, AND WAS THE FIRST CHILD OF GEORGE AND ELIZABETH (NEE KINNIBURGH) THOMPSON. FRED PASSED AWAY ON JULY 26, 1992 AT 94 AND CYNTHIA PASSED AWAY AT 85 ON JULY 22, 1995. GEORGE ALFRED THOMPSON DIED DECEMBER 26, 1967 AT THE AGE OF 82. HE WAS A LONG TIME EMPLOYEE OF THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD, RETIRING AFTER 50 YEARS WITH THE PAPER. HE WAS THE SON OF MR. AND MRS. J.S. THOMPSON, OF WOODSTOCK, ON. GEORGE MARRIED ELIZABETH MITCHEL KINNIBURGH ON NOVEMBER 17, 1909. ELIZABETH WAS THE DAUGHTER OF DAVID (SENIOR) AND JEAN (JEANNE) MAY (NEE MIDDLETON) THOMPSON. DAVID KINNIBURGH WAS BORN NEAR GLASGOW, SCOTLAND IN 1846 AND HIS WIFE JEAN (JEANNE) WAS BORN IN GLASGOW IN 1856. THE TWO WERE MARRIED IN SCOTLAND IN 1871, HAD A TOTAL OF 12 CHILDREN, AND MOVED TO TENNESSEE AFTER THE BIRTH OF 7 OF THEIR CHILDREN. THEY REMAINED IN TENNESSEE UNTIL 1906 WHEN THEY MOVED TO SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND THEN SETTLED IN PURPLE SPRINGS IN 1907. THEIR CHILDREN INCLUDE: JEAN SHORTHOUSE, MARY ALEXANDER, HELEN WATSON, MARGARET OFFICER, JAMES, DAVID, GEORGE, JOHN, ELIZABETH THOMPSON, WILLIAM, HUGH, AND MIDDLETON. IT DOES NOT APPEAR THAT MRS. GEORGE (ELIZABETH) THOMPSON’S MOTHER WAS NAMED MARY, BUT ELIZABETH HAD A SISTER NAMED MARY, AS WELL AS A SISTER-IN-LAW NAMED MARY: HER BROTHER JAMES MARRIED MARY PARK (NEE CAIN). SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR PHOTOCOPIES FROM “FADED TRAILS: GRASSY LAKE, PURPLE SPRINGS” BY THE GRASSY LAKE HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND ARTICLES FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD.

Catalogue Number

P19960003003

Acquisition Date

1996-02

Collection

Museum

Less detail