Something Old, Something New: 150 Years of Wedding Fashion & Tradition

Weddings are tradition, and this spring, Hearthside House Museum opens its 2025 by honoring the tradition of weddings with its popular exhibit, "Something Old, Something New." The exhibit is featured on 5 dates during March-April. Fifty dresses are on display spanning 150 years, covering each decade from the 1850's to 2000. Discover how the fashions have changed and can be identified with each era, as well as how ceremonies, receptions, photography, and honeymoon destinations all follow similar trends. Beautifully decorated rooms of spring flowers throughout two floors of the house museum provide the perfect backdrop to showcase the stunning fashions. Also on exhibit are antique wedding certificates, photographs, where traditions came from, superstitions and more.

Included on display are dresses worn by the family members of different generations such as mother/daughter or granddaughter, as well as different dresses worn by members of the same family. In some cases there are the back stories of who wore the dress. One of the dresses displayed was worn by a member of the Kennedy family in the 1960s, along with her gown worn to the inaugural ball for president-elect John F. Kennedy and the invitation that went along with it.

Traditional wedding music plays in the background as visitors are welcomed to take the self-guided tour through the museum to see these stunning examples of wedding fashions. While some traditions have withstood the test of time, others have disappeared into history. Docents dressed in period attire will be available throughout the museum to inform visitors as they learn about the evolution of weddings that this exhibit presents.

Prior to the closing of the exhibit on April 26th, there will be a separate event taking place in the morning at the Saylesville Friends Meetinghouse at 374 Great Road, one of the oldest continuously operating meetinghouses in RI since 1704. A double wedding recommitment ceremony will occur here, the same place where the participants ancestors held their double ceremony in 1913. It will be conducted in true Quaker fashion with the bride and groom officiating at their ceremony and all guests signing the wedding certificate at the conclusion of the service. Refreshments will follow. A separate registration from the exhibit is required at hearthsidehouse.org.

Admission times for the exhibit are staggered between 1-3 pm so as to avoid crowding. Purchase tickets and reserve date and time slot in advance at hearthsidehouse.org.

Built in 1810, Hearthside is an award-winning house museum that is managed by the Friends of Hearthside, an all-volunteer nonprofit organization which serves as its stewards to preserve, protect, promote, and interpret the historic sites at the Great Road Heritage Campus at Chase Farm Park.