Married in a Brown Suit
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (325818)
Rockingham, Australia
January 20, 2017 3:14am CST
Talking to @TheHorse about my parents, I mentioned that my mother left school at 14 but she and her brother rode their horses into town to attend 'night school' for another year I think. At one stage she had a job in a local haberdashery store. She saved her money and bought herself a straw hat which had a coloured ribbon. I think she was 19 at the time. Her mother made her remove the coloured ribbon and replace it with a black one.
Mum married at 27. She had all her teeth removed before the wedding so it wouldn't be an added expense for her husband. This, I learnt many years later, was almost standard practice in those years. She was married in a dark brown suit. And I need to stop there or I'll be weeping all over the keyboard.
27 people like this
32 responses
@katsmeow1213 (28717)
• United States
20 Jan 17
@JudyEv holy crow! She lived a really long life!
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
@katsmeow1213 She did indeed. She had a hip replacement at 99 1/2. Before the op the doctor told her it would be good for years. She replied that it only had to last 6 months. I think she thought that once she reached 100, a switch would be thrown and that would be that. The op was a success although she fell and sustained a hairline fracture of the pelvis. But the op stopped the pain and she had a few good years after that.
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
I'm sure that very true. They didn't expect much and were happy with what they had. Thankfully Mum ended up with some years of relative comfort. She had good health, a garden she loved, many friends and loving grandchildren. I guess really she was one of the lucky ones.
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
People didn't go to dentists then because of the expense and most didn't even clean their teeth. Most ended up with dentures.
@Jessicalynnt (50525)
• Centralia, Missouri
20 Jan 17
I love the word haberdashery, I guess the colored ribbon was too racy?
1 person likes this
@Jessicalynnt (50525)
• Centralia, Missouri
20 Jan 17
@JudyEv hehe, I would have kept the other ribbon and swapped it back on and off.
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@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
@Jessicalynnt I guess Mum was too obedient to do that.
1 person likes this
I'd like to be half the person she was.
@youless (112123)
• Guangzhou, China
20 Jan 17
@JudyEv But I think it is still no need to remove the teeth at the beginning. I also think that the look will be strange? I accept that in the past there were many strange habits that we can't really understand it today. Such as in my country, in the ancient time women had to bind their feet as they thought the small feet would be pretty ladies. No men would like to marry a woman with "big feet".
1 person likes this
@averygirl72 (37726)
• Philippines
20 Jan 17
That's my question too. What's the purpose?
2 people like this
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
@averygirl72 @youless I replied to your comments earlier but it's disappeared. My mother was born in 1910 and many people didn't know about the importance of brushing teeth. If you got a toothache you went to the dentist and the tooth was pulled out. Eventually you would have less and less teeth and then any remaining ones would be pulled out and a set of false teeth (dentures) made. While waiting for your dentures you would just have to eat soft food.
1 person likes this
@lovinangelsinstead21 (36850)
• Pamplona, Spain
20 Jan 17
Beautiful photo of your Mom. Very nice to see that she lived a very long and happy life with all its ups and downs. Amazing.
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@lovinangelsinstead21 (36850)
• Pamplona, Spain
22 Jan 17
@JudyEv
She seems happy enough there in that photo its a really beautiful one and she sort of reminds me of my Nan Amy. Although I never knew her she looked something like your Mom in that photo.
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@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
22 Jan 17
@lovinangelsinstead21 It is a lovely photo. Thanks.
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
@averygirl72 @SIMPLYD They were poor and it would have been a very simple affair. The brown suit was probably seen as much more serviceable. She probably wore it many times to all sorts of occasions.
3 people like this
@PurnaSharma (2557)
• Guwahati, India
21 Jan 17
When this photo was taken,she had her teeth or not,you and you mom look alike
1 person likes this
@PurnaSharma (2557)
• Guwahati, India
21 Jan 17
@JudyEv who? Anyway but this is true you both are look alike.
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@Happy2BeMe (99399)
• Canada
20 Jan 17
You mom was a beautiful woman. You look a lot like her. Things were not easy back then.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
It was tough for everyone I guess. She had twins in 1938. The first one was delivered and the doctor said 'wait a minute. I think there's another baby' and that was the first she knew about having twins. As I said to someone else, times have changed.
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@Happy2BeMe (99399)
• Canada
20 Jan 17
@JudyEv yes back then twins were a complete surprise. Life was hard.
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@katsmeow1213 (28717)
• United States
20 Jan 17
@JudyEv oh OK. I don't think I'd ever heard that before.
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@JudyEv (325818)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Jan 17
Haberdashery stores sold smaller items to do with sewing - zips, threads, etc. They might have sold fabrics and perhaps clothing and accessories as well.
@hereandthere (45651)
• Philippines
20 Jan 17
it's okay judy. 
somehow the movie 'australia' with nicole kidman and hugh jackman came to mind (even though i never saw it, just read about it and saw pictures in a magazine) so the storyline might not even be close.
somehow the movie 'australia' with nicole kidman and hugh jackman came to mind (even though i never saw it, just read about it and saw pictures in a magazine) so the storyline might not even be close.1 person likes this
@hereandthere (45651)
• Philippines
22 Jan 17
@JudyEv people in the past could make the really hard decisions, accept the consequences and keep on living
1 person likes this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
20 Jan 17
She is very beautiful.
Her teeth! Isn't it harsh what people thought was the right thing to do? My g'mother said she was married in a suit. No need to waste money on a dress when they were trying to build a house.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (3045)
•
21 Jan 17
She had her TEETH removed??? Yikes, that sounds terrible for her! Bless her heart :'(
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