Bucket List: Kansas City Historic Garment District Museum

 

Three great things about the Kansas City Historic Garment District Museum:

1. Pictures are allowed.
2. If you have clean hands, you can touch anything you want.
3. Ann Brownfield, who worked as a designer in the district for 30 years, is on-hand for guided tours. Seriously, that alone should count for about 99.9% of your reason to go.

Why has it taken me so long to finally go?

1. Well, its hours vary by season.  Its currently open Fridays and Saturdays from 10-3, through the end of September, or by appointment. Because it's not a large museum, spring and summer dresses are currently on display; they'll switch out dresses for the holidays.
2. I needed to go with someone who wouldn't be ready to leave after 30 minutes *cough cough*
3. Um.  I don't know.  Life's busy and all that.

Wait.  You didn't know Kansas City had a garment district?  

After World War I, and through the 1940s, the area employed over 4,000 persons and boasted that 1 out of every 7 women in the U.S. purchased a garment designed and made in Kansas City. The garment manufacturing industry was the second largest employer of any industry in Kansas City.

http://www.kcgarmentmuseum.org/history/

The city's number 1 employer? That would have been the stockyards.

If you're the type of person who hates looking at other people's vacation photos, I'm sorry in advance. 

(read: here they come...)

Vintage machines and cutting tools

Designed by Valentino, but sewn here in Kansas City.  TWA was headquartered here until 1964.  

close up of cut work...how cool is that?

cotton dress with matching bolero

detail of fabric print

  

wool coat

 1/2 size dress; with photo below of designer

 silk halter dress with bolero

Ann Brownfield, the curator, has been accepting donations of dresses for the museum collection for about a decade.  Each donation came with a story about who wore it, where it was purchased, and what events it was worn to, so she can tell stories about every item, and then some.  I would have loved to hear more about her design process and traveling for purchasing fabrics, though.

My takeaways? 

How many companies today publish yearbooks of their employees?

Although they did have sergers, a lot of garments had seams that were pinked, pinked and overcast, or hand-hemmed.  Personally, I'm feeling better about seam finishing.

I also finally learned the differences between pattern sizing for juniors, missy, and 1/2 size.

So, are you wondering why Kansas City doesn't have a garment district anymore? 

The clothing manufacturers here in KC did not sell to the large department stores; they couldn't produce the amount of stock need for large department stores within the time frame.  Salesmen sold to smaller Mom-and-Pop stores all around the country, and as those stores closed, the garment manufacturers dwindled, too. I guess I never thought about how the closing of smaller stores would impact producers. 

If you've time to kill on the internets:

Kansas City Historic Garment District Museum 

We Were Hanging by a Thread, Ann Brownfield's book about the garment industry

KSHB Fox 41 news clip about the museum

Nelly Don, KC native

KC Public Library video series Meet the Past: Nell Donnelly (27 minutes)

And last, but not least, who wouldn't want to visit the park with a giant statue of a needle and button?

I finished my project for the Sew Weekly Reunion, too, and will be posting those later this week!