One Freezer-Full of Dresses at a Time
But what's inside might be surprising: it's clothing.
Lay, who operates the historical society's textile conservation laboratory, has been going through a process to freeze away the carpet beetles that find themselves attracted to the dusters, wedding gowns and flapper dresses of Montgomery County's historical movers-and-shakers.
“It's my favorite day of the week,” Lay said of the unpacking and repacking ritual. The historical society has recently opened up Lay's work to the public, offering appointments to watch her work on Thursdays.
“Not every box has the beetles,” Lay said, but she's still methodically going through the society's entire collection to get rid of the visitors once and for all.
There are about 10,000 objects in the historical society's collection. About 3,000 of them are textiles, including everything from clothing to handbags to tablecloths and quilts.
The beetles tend to be drawn to certain textiles: feathers, fur, leather and wool. They chomp on the materials, leaving little trails of their travels.
But Lay said none of the damage she's encountered so far has been catastrophic.
Thank goodness.
Lore dates some of the objects in the historical society's collection back to the mid-1700s.
One of the oldest garments is an embellished silk waistcoat said to have been worn by Charles Jones, one of the first judges in Montgomery County, at the court of King George III in the mid-1700s. But Lay said the construction and style reveals that it was probably from a bit later, perhaps later that century.
Still the waistcoat, with threads of gold that have tarnished to a dull, steely gray, is too old and fragile to even be removed from its carefully packed box. Lay offers visitors a simple peek inside by lifting the cover.
Other items included in the society's collection include christening gowns, military uniforms and the other “things people keep.”
As she unpacks and repacks boxes each Thursday, Lay shares her knowledge about fashion, fabric and history with onlookers.
“Buttons in the 19th century could really be extraordinary…Sleeves are always a really good indicator of a style change…That's the great thing about wedding dresses—you know the exact date,” were among her comments during a recent afternoon unpacking.
Once she's done with cleaning, repairing and analyzing items post-freeze, Lay repacks them and places them on shelves in new temperature-and-humidity-controlled rooms that will prevent future bug infestations.
On a recent rainy afternoon, she reflected on the importance of preserving such items.
“Textiles are the first thing that we as human beings attach to,” she said. “They comfort us. They hold on to smells that are important to us.”
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