The Weaver Wedding: Part 1

By Adrienne Kirby, Gaines Town Historian

A traditional wedding is an all-day affair for the wedding party and close family. From getting dressed in the morning, to the ceremony, and then to the reception, it’s a long day. Neva Murray took photos of Emily and Murray Weaver’s nuptials in 1948. One must guess she was close to the bride’s family, as she documented all the highlights of the day, from morning to evening.

The first set of photos is of the bride, Emily Herman, and her maids getting ready. There were three bridesmaids in all, plus a flower girl. This first photo shows Emily most likely zipping up a dress. There are a few incidentals in this photograph worth pointing out. The bride is wearing a kerchief, which she probably slept in, to keep her hair curlers in place and prevent frizzy hair. Behind her, we see a improvised dressing table; a small stand covered with a large floral fabric (which appears to match the curtains in the next photo) and a low hung circular mirror. Above the mirror is a wall sconce, but the shade is missing, and there seems to be some sort of rigged electrical wiring leading up to an overhead fixture.

The next photo shows the flower girl watching as rouge (or blush as we now call it) is being applied. The bobby pins holding the flower girl’s hair ribbon in place are clearly seen. As with several other brides in this album, Emily is wearing a string of pearls. It’s easy to imagine the excited, nervous chatter of getting ready and making sure dresses, hair, makeup, and other details are just right.

Our last photo shows the bride slipping on her wedding garter. Between the last photo and this one, it appears that they were getting ready in a small bedroom. An iron bed frame is seen to the left, with a folded patchwork quilt on top of the coverlet. The floor is covered with a patterned linoleum, which was extremely popular to install in kitchens, as well as entire second floors of homes in the 1940’s, due to its durability and easiness to clean.

Despite the seventy six years that have passed since these photos were taken, they capture the timeless essence of preparing to say, “I do.”

More photos of the Weaver’s wedding day will appear in future articles.