Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Keep up with the news -- follow this blog

Now that you have found our blog, you can keep up with it by following the blog. If you do not have a Google account, you might want to sign up for one.
How do I become a Follower of a blog?
There are several ways to become a follower of a blog. One of the easiest ways is to visit this blog is to click on the "Follow" button under the "Followers" widget:
1. You'll then see a popup window with the options to either follow publicly or privately:
2. Select how you'd like to follow the blog, then click the "Follow this blog" button. It is that simple, you are now a follower of the blog! If you elected to follow the blog publicly, your profile picture will be displayed on the blog with a link to your Blogger profile
3. Then bookmark this link to return to it or download the Google Readers so you can keep up with what you have read.

What will you get through this blog?
This blog should be a place where you can access after action event reports and pictures, upcoming event news and discussions on 1850-1890 period dress and life and home items of interest to living historians in Texas.

So...Won't you join us?

Meet Us at Fort Concho In October

Hello!

Get your room reservations ASAP! Fort Concho NHS is hosting the National Cavalry Sept. 29 - Oct. 3, 2010! Ann and I are planning ladies activities for the weekend. We already have Officer's Quaters #3 reserved. Our focus will be on the Civil War Era. Please mark your calenders and reserve a room quickly. San Angelo rooms will fill up quick since the event is a National one.
Everyone,

Please visit Old Bulbs Gazette at this link: newsletter@oldhousegardens.com

This is where you may find many of the oldest, antique bulbs still available!

Sharon

Saturday, March 20, 2010

After Action Report of Frontier Women's Living History Conference 2010

Click to play this Smilebox slideshow: FWLHA Conference 2010
Create your own slideshow - Powered by Smilebox
This picture slideshow created by Ann Dixon with Smilebox

Saturday morning arrived with superior weather. There were ladies from Kansas, New Mexico, Louisiana and our beloved Texas. All ladies were in great spirits and gathered together to learn about frontier gardens, how 19th century machines were invented by women to make their lives somewhat easier, Victorian knitting (crazy squares) presented by Arnie, a great overview of needlepoint as well as a hands-on project graciously presented by Joan Garrett.

Our honored guests, Marla Matin and Rusty Gardner, from Kansas were both a special treat. Marla presented a session whereby we learned the intricate ins and outs of interpretation. Indeed, we learned about first, second, and third wall interpretation. Marla does a first person interpretation of Libbie Custer, the widow of the famous Calvary Officer, General George Custer! Marla has been invited all over the country to perform her interpretation of Libbie. In fact, she did have the honor to perform before West Point graduates! Plans are underway to bring Libbie back to Texas for our Fort Griffin event in October.

Mrs Ann Dixon, as Mrs. Dr. Notson, organized a style show whereby some of the historical ladies of Fort Concho and San Angelo were introduced in a skit about a imaginary tea held at Ft. Concho. Sara Reeves played a recent Irish immigrant servant, Mrs. Notson’s maid. The tea’s hostess, Mrs. Notson, the wife of Ft. Concho’s physician, was played by Ann Dixon, Sandy Morgan entered playing Many Horses, a wife of an Indian Scout working for the Army, nearly scaring the unsuspecting servant to death! Next to arrive was Helen Baird as a post laundress delivering table clothes and napkins. Carolina Angela de la Garza DeWitte was the next to knock bearing supplies for the tea from the store across the river. (San Angelo was named for Angela DeWitte, the wife of a store keeper across the river from Ft. Concho. She arrived with her friend Emma Del Frate and a Mexican servant played by a young lady named Paige. The next visitors were the invited ladies of the tea. First was Mrs. Edith Grierson (Kathleen P.) and her daughter, Edith (Carolyn). Mrs. Grierson was the wife of post commander, Col. Benjamin Grierson and Edith was the young lady who died of typhoid in Officer’s Quarter’s #1 when she was only 13. Then came honored guests of the tea were Libbie Custer and her traveling companion, Rusty visiting from Fort Larned, Kansas. Finally arriving were two ladies, Kellie Knight and Ann Johnson, in a flurry of fancy dress. These ladies came to remind the others that the post “hop” or dance was soon to start. No one wanted to be late for the dance. After all left for the post hop, the hostess breathed a sigh of relief. Some things never change.

Breakfast was of fresh strawberries, apples, donuts, hard-boiled eggs, orange juice, and grapefruit juice. Snickerdoodle coffee and cinnamon hot tea graced our breakfast tables. Lunch was homemade Tomato Bisque soup and cold-cut meat and cheese sandwiches. An informal tea was served late afternoon, which consisted of brownie bites, orange cream mini-cup cakes, almond-raspberry butter cookies, cucumber sandwiches, pimento cheese on toast points and tea.

Many fine wares were purchased by the ladies from Chez Crochet and Frontier Lady Fashions. All the ladies left with bundles and packages of finery and excellent reading material. Another special treat was the opportunity to see a wonderful display of Ft. Concho artifacts which highlight children's clothes and toys.

On Sunday afternoon we ate one more luncheon together before the ladies loaded up on various wagons and coaches heading to all points north, south, east and west. Promises were made of a return visit to Fort Concho on the second weekend in March of 2011.
...Submitted by Sharon Baird

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Pictures from Previous Ladies Schools

Conference Agenda


School of the Victorian Lady
March 13, 2010
Fort Concho, Officer’s Quarters No. 8


7:30-8:30: Register for Conference & Continental Breakfast

8:45-9:45: Heritage Gardening

10:00-10:45: Victorian Machines & Suffragettes

11:00-11:45: Jewelry With Jeri

12:oo-12:45-Lunch

1:00-2:45: Crazy Blocks & Crochet

3:00-3:45: Libby Custer-First Person Intretation

4:00-4:45: Style Show-Ladies of Fort Concho

5:00-5:30-Late afternoon tea

5:30-6:30- Needlepoint Overview


School of the Victorian Lady
March 14
Fort Concho, Officer’s Quarters No. 8

8:00-8:30-Continental Breakfast

8:45-9:45- House & Home-Cooking & Cleaning in the 19th Century
Strawberry Jam

10:00-10:45-Needlepoint Sampler

11:00-12:00-Roundtable discussion of Living History
Victorian Collections
Individual work with our presenters
Next year’s events & conference

Upcoming Conference

Ft. Concho National Historic Landmark

The Frontier Women's Living History Association will be holding its Fifth annual conference at Ft. Concho National Historic Landmark in San Angelo, Texas. The association is a group of living historian through the Southwest dedicated to preserving the history of women on the Southwestern frontier in the 1800's. The members are generally living historians who volunteer at historic sites throughout the states of Texas, New Mexico, Lousianna, and Colorado. Their work provides visitors a glimpse into the lives of the people who settled the West.


Please join us on this blog to learn more about history and the events and people that shaped them.