History center debuts matrimonial exhibit from yesteryear

MARQUETTE — Whether you’ve been married for 50 years or young and single, weddings are an important tradition to many.

But, our time honored customs might not be as traditional as you think.

The Marquette Regional History Center hopes to show just that with their “Let’s Tie the Knot” exhibit. The display showcases wedding dresses from as far back as the 1840’s and the Victorian era all the way up to the late 60’s.

While some of the dresses are white and familiar, others incorporate unusual colors like blue and black and strange fabrics like a World War II parachute.

“It’s just really neat to see the variety of gowns. They may not always be so extravagant, but they’re still beautiful in their own way,” said curator Jo Wittler.

The dresses on display were chosen from over fifty the history center keeps in permanent storage.

Wittler wanted to make sure the exhibit focused on dresses worn by locals so that pictures and news clippings could be displayed too. But, there were plenty of candidates to pick from.

“We get calls all the time about wedding dresses. You know, people save them because how do you just throw something away if it was your mother’s or your grandmother’s or yours. So a lot of people have them in their closets and a lot of them have made their way to the history center over the years,” Wittler added.

The display consists of 13 dresses along with pictures, bouquets and invitations. If you’d like to visit, the exhibit will be open until April 25th.