March 27, 2017
WHEELING, W.Va. – West Virginia Independence Hall (WVIH) in Wheeling will host “’Some in rags and some in jags,’ but none ‘in velvet gowns,’” an 18th-century clothing seminar, on Saturday, April 1 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sue Weigand, project coordinator for the Fort Henry Living History, Inc., will lead the seminar. Weigand is a local historian and reenactor in the Wheeling area since 1997.
The focus of the workshop will be on frontier clothing in Western Pennsylvania and Virginia circa 1774-1782, such as clothing styles, footwear, fabrics, construction, patterns and approved sutlers. Women’s clothing will be the topic of discussion from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and then after a break for lunch, the concentration will be on men’s clothing from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
The event is free and open to the public and is sponsored by Fort Henry Living History, Inc. and WVIH.
For more information and to RSVP, contact Weigand at (740) 310-9011 or Sueweigand233@gmail.com.
West Virginia Independence Hall has been on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) since 1970. It was originally built as a federal custom house in 1859, served as the home of the pro-Union state conventions of Virginia during the spring and summer of 1861 and as the capitol of loyal Virginia from June 1861 to June 1863. It also was the site of the first constitutional convention for West Virginia.
Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1988, the museum is maintained and operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, with the cooperation and assistance of the West Virginia Independence Hall Foundation. The museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, except major holidays. The museum is located on the corner of 16th and Market Streets in Wheeling.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the Office of Secretary of Education and the Arts with Gayle Manchin, cabinet secretary. The division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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