Words and photos by Allie McConnell
AnalogueChic.com

Open House Day at the Danbury Museum was not at all hampered by the persistent drizzle or gray skies on Saturday morning.  Connecticut's statewide free museum admission event on June 12 saw the opening of the exhibit "Weddings Through the Ages".  The annual Danbury Garden Club Flower Show provided the perfect floral decoration to the exhibit opening.

Wedding ensembles from the 1850s to the 1970s circled the main exhibition hall, while entries in the Flower Show's Horticulture Division were displayed on rows of tables in the center of the room.  Garden Club members and other attendees navigated the aisles, admiring the details on both the plant specimens and the historical gowns.  The onsite garden was in full bloom, and wedding-themed floral arrangements were placed in vignettes throughout the Museum's historical buildings.

The gowns on display have been donated to the Museum over the years, and ranged from an almost new creamy white piece from 1971 to a gown from the 1860s aged to nearly golden-yellow.  The style and decorative details of the gowns provide a survey of fashion trends from the Victorian period to the mid-20th century.  The richness or simplicity of the embellishment also points to the economic status of the brides who wore them.

Just two of the gowns were not, and never had been, white: the blue plaid silk dress worn by Laura Hoyt in 1860, attests to the prevalence of blue gowns before Queen Victoria's white wedding of 1840 became the standard; and a simple mauve dress worn during World War II was witness to the fabric shortages of the war years.

The Museum is planning several other wedding themed events throughout the summer and early fall.  Contact the Museum, or visit the website, DanburyMuseum.org, for details.