52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - Week 29 "Fashion"

GREAT-GRANDMA'S HATS

My great-grandmother, Amelia Schluessler Wellhausen, was a fashion icon in her time.  She always had the latest dresses and coats and what I remember most were her hats.  She was born in 1876 and passed away in 1963 when I was 16 so I remember her well. When my brother and I were younger she would often come and babysit for us.  

When I developed my interest in genealogy she was already gone but my grandmother, her daughter, shared many photos and other memorabilia with me.  In studying the photos I noticed many photos in which great-grandma was wearing a hat.  

Here are some examples:

My oldest photo of my great-grandmother dates to approximately 1890 when she would have been 14.  She was in some type of production where she sat in a boat on a stage with a young gentleman and her hat was something to behold.  My grandmother told me this was a school production but I really doubt that my great-grandmother was still attending school when she was a teenager. This photo is a tintype, the only tintype photo I have:

Tintypes, originally known as ferrotypes or melainotype, were invented in the 1850's and continued to be produced into the 20th century.  The tintype was very popular during the Civil War because every soldier wanted to send a photo of himself back to his family with his rifle and sword.  The tintype actually does not contain any tin but is made of thin black iron.  It is sometimes confused with ambrotypes and daguerreotypes but is easily distinguishable from them by the fact that a tintype attracts a small magnet.

In 1925 in Detroit, this photo of my great-grandmother and my grandmother was taken.  I have no idea what the outfit is that my great-grandmother is wearing; she was not a nurse but perhaps she volunteered in a hospital as the outfit resembles that of a medical worker:

In 1928 she was pictured with her granddaughter, my aunt, Marilyn Gertrude Schulte.  In this photo little Marilyn is shown with her maternal grandmother, my great-grandmother Amelia, as well as little Marilyn's paternal grandfather, Rudolph Schulte.  In this photo great-grandma has another of her stylish hats on for the time period.  This hat reminds me of the hats shown on the TV show "The Walton's" when the "mama, Olivia" would be going to church:

In 1939 great-grandma was pictured in a different hat which I thought was very unique.  I really like the coat as well:

In 1940 great-grandma was photographed with her grandson, my uncle, Melbourne Schulte, at his high school graduation, and again she had a different hat on:

When I was 10 my aunt taught me how to knit.  The first project I tackled was a simple hat with ties.  I remember my great-grandmother asking me to make a special one for her in pink and I did.  She insisted on paying me $1.00 for this hat.  I doubt she ever wore it, I never saw her wearing it but she made me happy that she showed an interest in what I was learning.

I don't have a photo of that hat any longer but it was very similar to this one which is a photo from Etsy:

Hats were certainly a favorite of my great-grandmother and I will always remember her this way.

Copyright 2021, Cheryl J. Schulte