While Phillis Wheatley was the first published African American writer, Lucy Terry Prince is one of the first known African American writer, composing โBars Fightโ at least two decades before the publishing of โPoems on Various Subjects.โ Lucy, enslaved in Africa as an infant in the 1733, lived in Bristol, Rhode Island and Deerfield, Massachusetts with her enslavers before gaining her freedom. In 1746, she witnessed a raid in which five Deerfield residents were killed by local Abenaki people, which inspired โBars Fight.โ Marrying Abijah Prince in 1750, they had six children and settled in Guilford, Vermont. Facing challenges from a neighbor, John Noyes, the Princes' farm was damaged, and they endured legal battles. Despite a successful plea before the Governor of Vermont in 1785, ongoing feuds led to a mob attack on their farm. Throughout these hardships, Lucy Terry Prince remained a respected member of her community until her death in 1821.
Image 1: Since there are no surviving portraits of Lucy Terry Prince and she died before the advent of photography, this portrait by artist Louise Minks is what appears when you google โLucy Terry Prince.โ
Image 2: From to age 5 to her marriage, Lucy Terry Prince lived in the Wells-Thorn House in Deerfield, Massachusetts.
For this week's #FridayFrills we have this 1925 A. & L. Tirocchi evening dress. All the decorations are made by applying different colored cellophane sequins and jet beads in the pattern. Just incredible. @risdmuseum#Fashionhistory#ootd
For this week's #WeddingWednesday here is a glorious 1921 wedding gown and train made with silk and faux pearls by Josephine M. Kasselman. She was a dressmaker in Cincinnati from 1913 to 1933. The mannequin's pose is very appropriate #ootd#Fashionhistory
#Ootd is this 1926 evening dress by A & L Tirocchi. It's made of silk embroidered with bugle beads and sequins. The gold and black contrast nicely to make a dramatic statement at the bottom of the gown. I would love to see it swoosh on the dance floor @RISDMuseum#fashionhistory
For this week's #WeddingWednesday, here is a 1928 wedding gown. Sadly, we can't see the front, but the back shows the luxuriousness of the velvet as a train comes from the dropped waist. Along the train's border, the bottom of the hem, and what appears to be a sash drooped...
This is Benny. He noticed the weather has been pretty terrible outside. Would be a real shame if that meant you had to spend alllll day cuddling on the couch. 13/10