NILES Display features life-size copies of first ladies' gowns

Visitors will see the gowns and Niles historical items from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday.
By JAYME RAMSON
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
NILES -- From Martha Washington to Nancy Reagan, the Niles Historical Society has many of the first ladies covered -- in replica gowns.
The Ward-Thomas Estate off state Route 46 is the home of 37 gowns, all replicas of the collection at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
Anne Townley, a former president of the historical society, is in charge of the exhibit. It was her initiative that brought many of the gowns to the estate in the first place.
Niles resident Ann Frasca proposed the project to the city as part of the city's 1976 U.S. Bicentennial celebration. She worked with seamstresses and a curator from the Smithsonian to get accurate descriptions of the gowns.
Townley made four of the dresses in the collection, also consulting with the Smithsonian.
"When I wrote to the Smithsonian about the dresses that I was going to make, they sent me diagrams," she said. "They don't have patterns but they do have diagrams, so you could see at least what the pieces of the dress look like and have some idea of where you were starting."
Other dresses were the works of local seamstresses and others.
When finished, the gowns were modeled by Niles women as part of a fashion show at the bicentennial celebration.
The project was financed through various sources.
"Some of the women bought their own. Some companies donated money. Everybody donated their time," Townley said.
Growing exhibit
Now, all 37 dresses in the Niles collection are on display at the estate for the first time. Townley hopes to have an entire replica collection of the Smithsonian gowns someday.
"I was pretty sure I could get the ones I had made and the ones from some of the people I knew would trust me with them."
The growth of the exhibit has continued, with two gowns added in the past year.
"It ended up that people just started giving them to us," Townley said. "They were very glad that they had a place where they would be taken care of and where people could enjoy them."
Townley wants to use the exhibit to attract local residents to history.
"I'm interested in history and I'm interested in ways to get children involved with history," she said. "I think a lot of them regard it as boring and part of the past that they don't care about. This brings it alive, not only for them but for adults, too."
Townley hopes that after visiting, people walk away with an appreciation for history and preservation of historical items.
"As far as I know, this is the only place with life-size reproductions in the country," Townley said.
Visitors can tour the museum Sunday and the first Sunday of every month from 2 to 5 p.m.
Other tours can be arranged by calling (330) 544-2143.