All Dressed Up - 1950s Style

1950s Party Fashions on Display at the Grand Rapids Public Museum

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (July 26, 2011) - Get a flashback of 1950s social circles when the Grand Rapids Public Museum unveils its newest exhibit , All Dressed Up - 1950s Style, July 30, 2011. Grand Rapids native Doris Cole donated to the Museum's collection 18 mid-century party gowns, along with photos, invitations, yearbooks and mementos from the era.

The collection includes stylish "New Look" inspired dresses with pinched waists and full skirts that were worn by Doris and her sister Janice to events at East Grand Rapids High School, Ottawa Hills High School, the University of Michigan and Radcliffe College. The excellent condition of the garments some 60 years later is testimony to the value Doris and her mother, Helen Cole, placed on maintaining the gowns and preserving the memories of the happy celebrations to which they were worn. They also evoke fond memories of shopping trips to former local retail establishments like Jacobson's, Steketee's, Wurzburg's and Herpolsheimer's. The dresses will be on display in the Museum's 2nd floor Bradford gallery through February 2012. The exhibit is free with Museum general admission.

To learn more about Doris and her dresses search the Museum's online collections catalog at www.grmuseum.org using the keywords "Doris Cole." The Public Museum is a collector of treasures, a motivator and resource for life-long learning, and a community partner in the pursuit of insight and understanding. For information call 616.456.3977.