You’re invited to the prom … exhibit at Falls on the Colorado
The Falls on the Colorado Museum, 2001 Broadway in Marble Falls, is dressed up with a new exhibit, 'Proms, Parties and Partnerships,' which runs through July. Photo courtesy of FOCM
The Falls on the Colorado Museum is an elegant vision with its latest exhibit, “Proms, Parties and Partnerships,” which runs through July.
The museum, 2001 Broadway in Marble Falls, is open from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Saturday. It also will be open on Monday, July 4. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.
The latest exhibit showcases dresses on loan and from the museum’s permanent collection, including a party dress worn by former Mayor Birdie Harwood, who was elected the first female mayor in the state of Texas before women even had the right to vote. Also on display is the 1949 wedding dress worn by Vashti Tucker, a museum docent and Marble Falls resident.
“We have evening gowns and flapper dresses, one with leaded glass beads that is so heavy we couldn’t hang it,” said Darlene Oostermeyer, a museum board director.
Museum visitors also will see a number of accessories, including a fox stole, a weasel boa from the 1920s, and a dress uniform worn by women serving in the U.S. Air Force.
“We have put out old marriage licenses, too,” Oostermeyer said. “Some are in German. We also have party invitations, wedding invitations, and a filled-out dance card. Just a lot of fun stuff from our collection that adds to the dresses on display.”
A papier-mâché wedding cake made by Nancy Ebling with Oostermeyer’s help is the exhibit’s centerpiece. It’s topped by two cornhusk dolls in wedding attire made by museum docent Sharon Spencer, who dresses her creations to fit exhibit themes.
While viewing the dresses in the comfort of an air-conditioned building, Oostermeyer has this suggestion.
“Imagine wearing one of these in our 100-plus-degree Texas weather,” she said. “Without air conditioning.”
The next Falls on the Colorado exhibit, which opens in August, will feature photographs of old Texas buildings of interest. The Texas Historical Commission curated the photos. The museum will include local photographs in the display.