Sepia formal photograph of Jeptha Homer Wade II, baby Jeptha Homer Wade Jr. and Jeptha Homer Wade I., Note on front says "J. H. Wade II (22 years old), J. H. Wade Jr. (6 months), J. H. Wade I (68 years old)". Note on back indicates the photograph company " E. Decker".
Sepia formal photograph of Jeptha Homer Wade II, baby Jeptha Homer Wade Jr. and Jeptha Homer Wade I., Note on front says "J. H. Wade II, J. H. Wade Jr., J. H. Wade I". Notes on back says the same as front, and indicates the photograph company "E. Decker".
In 1878 Ellen Garretson married Jeptha Homer Wade II, grandson of the Western Union Telegraph founder. The Wades often traveled and Nellie would have visited the Fifth Avenue firm Moschowitz & Russell to be fitted for this elaborate dress. The firm imported Parisian materials and no detail was overlooked, from delicately embroidered flowers to the sinuous, trained silhouette. Today, the Wade family’s impact can be experienced through the cultural institutions that they helped establish in University Circle, including the Cleveland Museum of Art and the WRHS., Made of silk faille, embroidery, and passmenterie. Worn in Cleveland, Ohio by Ellen Garretson Wade (1859-1917). Gift of Ellen Wade Chinn, 1996.39.2. Featured in the "Wow Factor: 150 Years of Bold Clothes" Exhibit.