Hoopskirts

On Nov 26, 1863, a Thanksgiving dinner was served at St. James Hall in London. The guests seem to have been diplomats, both Federal and British. The program was as follows: 1.Reading of President Lincoln's Proclamation of Thanksgiving 2. Prayer 3. Singing a song written to the melody of "Auld Lang Syne" We meet, the Sons of Freedom's Sires Unchanged, where'er we roam, While gather round their household fires The happy bands of home; And while across the far blue wave, Their prayers go up to God, We pledge the faith our fathers gave, -- The land by Freedman trod! The heroes of our Native Land Their sacred trust still hold, The freedom from a mighty band Wrenched by the men of old. That lesson to the broad earth given We pledge beyond the sea,...

This being November, I thought it would be appropriate to look at America's antebellum Thanksgiving. The stores around us today are rushing headlong into Christmas merchandising, and have been since before Halloween. How appropriate it feels to slow down and look at Thanksgiving in greater detail. An appropriate place to start would be some reasons for Thanksgiving. Many contemporary Americans seem to have lost touch with the concept of Thanksgiving as a day of giving thanks to God, filling the day instead with food and football. Food and football are both wonderful, but not as the primary motive for the day. In 1832, The Reverend William T. Harrison, minister of the First Presbyterian Church of Newark, NJ, published a sermon he gave on the reasons American citizens should be thankful on Thanksgiving. I liked the perspective he gave on how Americans saw themselves and their country. 1. The land itself that belongs to the United States . At the time, America comprised 2...

Freshly starched, crisply rustling clothes.. . I starch. I've been exploring various ways to starch my period clothing. Currently I starch petticoats and cotton dresses. The dresses receive a lighter coating of starch than the undergarments. I started out, as many do, with spray starch. Niagra Light - then moved up to heavy. I was unsatisfied. Spraying too heavily led to scorching and sticking on the iron soleplate. Never did I obtain the quality I was searching for - the crispness I had read about. Why starch? First and foremost, to my way of thinking, is because "they" did. Without starch, my petticoats were limp, even though they were ironed. Of course it is easier just to wash and dry your underpinnings, but it wasn't giving me a sense of recreating the proper look. Starch adds body, which should be self-evident. When you think about the bell shape of a woman's skirts, the importance of loft and body becomes clear. Since I wear a ...

We (my husband and I) ran a New Year's Ball in Milwaukee for the first time. Some observations, so perhaps I'll remember next year: The ball was a great deal of fun! We really enjoyed it! The group went through a great deal of time and effort to make the event special for everyone - and the food was great. People get more tired as the evening progresses, so the sets can actually be shorter. Our planned program of 20 dances was FAR too ambitious. At times 3 dances in a set would have been sufficient. 4 hours is an awfully long time for a ball (we didn't set the time) - and I got emotionally dragged out as it went on. I worried less and less about the dancers keeping exact time as it got later. I need to keep that in mind next year. Pacing is everything. Perhaps some more waltzes? I don't want to overload on waltzes, but they are slower.... People are so willing to put up with your little glitches if you are open with them and you can laugh....