The back is a lot of detail with gathering and a six button closure. What we also know about the dress is that it was altered over time. There was a long train attached at one point that train was shortened, and we can also see the fullness of the skirt. Then also these gores or these additions of fabric were added at some point to make the dress not just a tube but have a little bit more space at the bottom. Maybe it was altered for someone to have a little bit more room to move in. They commented she was still wearing the old styles from her youth. Everybody loved her any way. She wontsed to edcontinued to wear this tile. The dress now which is about 200 years old is in very fragile condition. You can tell from just the wear that the wear and tear under the arms and in some of the seams. Light damage over time. Just the inherent vice of textile to become weaker. This red velvet dress that we discovered in the trunk of the home has a legend that perhaps it was made from the draperies that dolley saved in 1814 from the president s house before he was burned. We know that dolley wore and en enjoyed fashion. We know that when dolley and james were redeck ratsorating the president s house through correspondence with the designer there was discussions about the draperies and the decision was made to use a red velvet drape for one of the rooms. If we fast forward to 1814 as dolley is planning to leave the president s house and packing up things she mentions in a correspondence that she packs some china and silver and the red velvet curtains and puts them in a wagon and sends them on their way to the bank of maryland for safekeeping. We know the portrait she saved of George Washington which shes known for as well went with someone to new york. We know that she mentions that these draperies left the president s house which was burned by the british within hours of her leaving. We know there was someone doing research on the madisons and their furnishes. When they looked at the dress they made a comment this is drapery weight velvet. The intrigue begins and weve been doing tests, comparing fabric samples and looking at many aspects of the dress, what we like to know is to find out what happened to those drapes the night they left the president s house. Theres some things we hope well find and so were still exploring the story. Some other trademarks were her turbans. We know she had quite a fashion influence on the capital city. The turban was a popular headpiece in the early, in the late 18th and early 19th century. This is one in the collection. Its made of a french charmuese silk and band around the front. She was often known to add jewels or plumes and could be seen across. Thats how you could look for dolley. What is special about this turban is the way we can authenticate it a year before her death. July 4th 1848 when she was on her way for the washington memorial she stopped her niece anna. Shes wearing the turban and you see these black curls. She used to wear a head band that could give her these lovely curls. Shes wearing a paisley shawl. Twhants through her family and to her daughter and her grand zonk. Here is the infamous trunk that was found under the eves in the house of pennsylvania. Its a trunk that would have been used much later for dolley and by her niece and her husband later. Let me open the trunk so you can see how beautiful it is inside. This is the trunk and would have been full of the objects in the clothing and textiles. Theres about 90 some objects pieces of textile or momentos in the trunk or laying beside the trunk as well as letters and documentation. The back panel has little brass hook and drops down, reveals another pattern but also a deep well for storing documents. Probably to hold perhaps tickets or other important documents. Theres so few things that exists of dolleys due to the circumstances in which at the end of her life that to have these pieces and varied item s real treasure. There arent very many pieces that exist that can be attributed to her family. Since dolley is North Carolinas only first lady and was born here in gillford county, we feel honored to be able to share and tell the story with the collections as well as other items from other family descendants. We are in blandwood mansion in greensboro, North Carolina. It is today a Historic House museum. The only building in greensboro listed as a National Historic landmark building. Its the home of governor John Morehead here in downtown greensboro. Today many historians look back on governor morehead as the father of modern North Carolina. Governor morehead was the governor of North Carolina from 1841 to 1845. He was popular governor through his ideas of reform and industry and human rights. His political career really began early through his education in law. After he graduated from the Caldwell Academy here in greensboro he went on to the university of North Carolina in chapel hill. He graduated from there as a lawyer. Quickly found more business here in greensboro. He found his wife here. Quickly found a place in government. When he was here as an elected official he worked closely with a large quaker community. He took on issues of internal improvement in the state. He took up issues with slavery, which is unusual for a politician in the south working with the quakers. He took, adopted other important issues to the quakers such as education. That really began to form his political platform. Governor morehead was one of the first candidates tahat ran a statewide candidacy. He was a great orator and personal personable. He won by a good margin and started his term in 1841. Governor morehead operated on a platform with four different areas of promoting the state economy. One of those was through improving transportation. He did that through rail. He improved state industry and he did that through creating manufacturing complex and enabling a network of transportation to support manufacturing. He thought it was important to expand Educational Opportunities to more citizens of the state. What a. J. Davis ro proproposed was a fashion forward style. It had a tower. It has low roof line like you would see in tuscany. Instead of the building faced in brick, it was stuccoed like you would see in central italy. What we have is the earliest example of the tuscan villa style or italian aid style. North carolina by the 1830s had become the rip vanwinkle state as people called it meaning it had sort of fallen into a slumber. It was one of the first original colonies colonies, it was losing population as people moved to places like indiana and illinois, especially quakers. People were levering the leaving the state. One way to do that is to provide manufacturing facilities and farmers with larger market. As he was running around the stats, runstate running for office, if a farmer raised corn or cotton, unless they could sell it to their neighbor and the neighbor would pay a very high price for it which nobody could afford to do they werent fully rewarded for the great crop they had. It which nobody could afford to do, they werent fully rewarded for the great crop they had. He was lobbied for the railroad he established a new port city for the state which is still one of important ports. That city was named in his honor, it was morehead city. They could be placed oen a ship and sent to philadelphia london or cape town and the states well reacted to that. He began to lobby for an open school system. He also thought it was important that women have access to education especially since he had five daughters. That that end he opened a school here in greensboro on his own property called the edge worth academy. That school was an extended Educational Opportunity for women and offered courses in mathematics and writing and more accelerated subject than what traditionally would have been offered women especially in the american south. He maintained this as his residence but they did live in the executive mansion in raleigh. He probably came here on weekends and when sessions were out. I bet he had probably favorite rooms but i bet his favorite was the west parlor. It was probably his favorite because its very much like him. It was designed by a. J. Davis. It incorporates North Carolina themes. They sort of dance around the ex exterior exterior. This was probably one of the most elaborate rooms when completed in the 1840s. The doors are grain to look like finer woods. They are made out of North Carolina pine but painted to look like finer woods. Ebony and crotch maple. Even the backs of some of the doors are mirrored
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