Event Description
On Tuesday, April 6th at 6:00 p.m. central time, the LaSalle Public Library virtually will host Erika Holst, Curator of History at the Illinois State Museum, when she presents, “Behind the Beautiful Dress: Making Cloth and Clothing in the 19th Century.”
It is hard to overstate the role of textiles in early American life. For families, the making of textiles and clothing required countless hours of labor. On the other hand, the purchase of textiles could consume a large portion of the household budget. For the nation, textiles drove the American pre-Civil War economy. They provided a money-making opportunity for a few and exploited the labor of countless others.
Many events have been cancelled or postponed due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19.
Please check with events or venues to make sure that scheduled events are still, in fact, happening. A Peek into the ISM s Closet The garments on view in the Illinois State Museum s Fashioning Illinois exhibition represent just a small fraction of the Museum s collection of historical clothing. Join Curator of History Erika Holst on this behind-the-scenes tour of the Museum s textile storage area to get a sense of the true scope of the Museum s collections. Holst will show examples of historic dresses, underpinnings, children s clothing, and accessories that rarely if ever make it into public view. In addition, visitors will learn how the garments came to the Museum, how they are cared for, and how they are researched and analyzed. A part of the Tales from the Vault Series.