Decade by decade, the exhibition traces evolving styles in women’s special occasion garb. From an all-white cotton lace flounced dress suitable for a tea party in a garden to a Jackie Kennedy-esque beige A-line with rhinestone accented bow, an Edwardian bridesmaid dress with train to a sophisticated wasp-waisted 1940s dress with matching custom-made suede shoes, style trends are captured in these carefully saved clothes which had special significance to their owners.
Also on display are an acid-green silk high-necked gown with black netting and jet beads from the late 1880s which came from the Elizabeth Ambler Estate, and was possibly worn by Betty Ambler’s grandmother. Lady Mary Crawley of Downton Abbey would have looked stunning in the stunning black chiffon flapper dress accented with rhinestones for a night on the town. A display of purses and women’s shoes rounds out the show.
About Wilton Historical Society
Visitors are welcome at the Wilton Historical Society Museum Complex (Historic District #5), which consists of the Betts-Sturgis-Blackmar House (red) built on-site c.1740; the c.1840 Burt Barn Gallery (yellow); the Sloan-Raymond-Fitch House (gray) built c.1770; the c. 1860 Abbott Barn, c. 1890 Blacksmith Shop, plus a c.1895 two-seat privy. Visitors may tour the historic houses, see the extensive tool collection in the Abbott Barn, and stroll in the 1750 Colonial Herb Garden. Plants in the flourishing garden are well marked as to their name and use, be it culinary, dying, potpourri or medicinal. A blacksmith is generally at his forge on Saturdays. The Burt Barn Gallery and Sloan House Gallery provide space for changing exhibitions, lectures and meetings. The Betts Store, a museum shop featuring hand-crafted, American made gifts and toys, is open during regular museum hours. Tours daily at 2:00.
The two 18th-century dwellings contain 12 rooms furnished to show the development of domestic life, the economy, furniture, and décor in New England homes, 1740-1910. Learn about authentic paint colors, wallpapers, and floor coverings from the Colonial to Victorian eras. Specialized collections include Norwalk-made redware and stoneware and other ceramics; one of the largest collections in the state of the objects of childhood, including dolls, dollhouses and toys; and a large textile and costume collection.
“Tools of the Trades” is a permanent exhibition of more than 600 tools used by the trades common to the area. The tool collection is presented in the c.1860 Abbott Barn, where visitors can see house building and woodworking, broom, shoe, hat, basket-making, coopering, fishing and oystering, hay, grain and ice harvesting tools. Most of these historic tools were contributed from the collection of Walter R. T. Smith (1922 – 2015; tool collector extraordinaire, master builder, building historian and preservationist, Society Emeritus Trustee).
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