The ball was held at a large hall at the US Patent Office at 8th and F Streets, NW. Tickets to the event were $10 with the proceeds going to support the Union was effort.

A brass band played music in the foyer, welcoming the 4,000 guests, while upstairs, a string ensemble played popular dance music from the period.  Women wore silk, satin and velvet dresses, while many men were in Union uniforms or formal evening attire.

I found an online copy of the original menu from the event, as well as

an invite that sold at auction and a dress worn to the event by the wife of the Secretary of the Interior. 

Dr. Lawrence E. Keener-Farley, the Dance Master at The Victorian Dance Ensemble, provided me with a few pointers for attending a dance from that era. It’s interesting how fragile women were thought to be (see #1 and 5) and how clumsy men were assumed to be (see #6).

1860s Ball Room Etiquette:

1. Never forget that ladies are to be first cared for, to have the best seats, the places of distinction, and are entitled in all cases to your courteous protection.
2. If you accompany your wife to a dancing party, be careful not to dance with her, except perhaps for the first set.
3. Be very careful how you refuse to dance with a gentleman. A prior engagement will, of course, excuse you but if you plead fatigue, do not dance the set with another.
4. Dance quietly, do not kick and caper about, nor sway your body to and fro, dance only from the hips downwards.
5. Lead a lady as lightly as you would tread a measure with a spirit of gossamer.
6. The fall of a couple is not a frequent occurrence in a ball room, but when it does happen it is almost always the man’s fault. Girls take much more naturally to the graceful movements of the dance, and are, besides, more often taught in childhood than their brothers.
7. Never remain in a ballroom until all of the company have left, or even until the last set. It is ill-bred, and looks as if you are unaccustomed to such pleasures, and so desirous to prolong each one.
8. It is best to carry two pairs of gloves, as in contact with dark dresses, or in handling refreshments, you may soil a pair, and thus will be under the necessity of offering your hand covered in a soiled glove to some partner.

Quoted from various 1860s sources.

Lincoln’s Inaugural Ball
Smithsonian American Art Museum
8th and G Streets – Great Hall, Third Floor
Washington, DC  (map it)

Dates and Times – Saturday, August 16, 2008, performances at Noon, 2:00 and 4:00 p.m.

Tickets – FREE

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place – Chinatown, Red, Green and Yellow lines, then a 2-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images – Lincoln gown, Mary Todd Lincoln – public domain, Victorian Dance Ensemble photo courtesy of same.

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Post from: The DC Traveler

The Smithsonian Institution was based on a gift of James Smithson, a British scientist, who left his entire estate to the United States of America in 1827.  His gift of over 100,000 gold sovereigns, or $500,000, (just under $9.5 million in today’s dollars) required the government to establish the Smithsonian Institution, to “increase and diffusion of knowledge."

An act of Congress in 1846 expanded the growth of collection into the world’s largest museum complex (16 museums) with over 140 million objects and the National Zoo in Washington, DC.

The Smithsonian museums include:

• Anacostia Community Museum
• Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
• Arts and Industries Building
• Freer Gallery of Art
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
• National Air and Space Museum
• National Museum of African Art
• National Museum of American History
• National Museum of the American Indian
• National Museum of Natural History
• National Portrait Gallery
• National Postal Museum
• S. Dillon Ripley Center
• Smithsonian American Art Museum
• Smithsonian Institution Building
• Smithsonian National Zoological Park (National Zoo)
• The National Gallery of Art (affiliated)

Happy Birthday Smithsonian!!

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Post from: The DC Traveler

Around the same time as the word was coined, in the late 1800s, the walls of Paris streets began to be plastered with colorful art nouveau advertising posters.  Since then, the promotional poster has become as mainstream as the 30-second TV spot.

Examples of how these posters have influenced society as part of the collection on exhibit in Ballyhoo! Posters As Portraiture at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.

The 61 classic posters were created to promote movies, music and musicians, products, sporting events, government campaigns,  and even catch criminals (John Wilkes Booth wanted poster). There’s also a few  presidential campaign posters, including a goofy looking Barry Goldwater for President poster from 1964.

Can you image a presidential campaign poster without a catchy slogan these days?

From P. T. Barnum and Thomas Edison to Apocalypse Now and the Got Milk? campaign, the poster has driven public opinion, product acceptance and the persona of celebrities and politicians.

My personal favorite in the collection, is the movie poster form Trinidad, staring Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford, which effectively used Rita in color with her costar, (who actually has significantly more screen time) fading into the black and white background.

Ballyhoo! Posters As Portraiture
National Portrait Gallery
Eighth and F Streets, NW,
Washington, DC 20001 (map it)

Hours – Daily 11:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., through Feb. 8, 2009

Admission – Free

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Metro Gallery Place-Chinatown – Red, Yellow and Green lines, or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images: from personal collection – ©2008, Jon Rochetti

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Post from: The DC Traveler