Escape from the Compound

There's a certain joke these days among my fellow interpreters. Several of us have started bringing our costumes to work and changing before we have public programs. In the past, several of us have arrived at work in costume and ready to go. Why the small, but time consuming change? Because we realize we look eerily like the people who were all over the news a few weeks ago, the polygamists from Texas. Anytime you are wearing prairie-garb while pumping gas, grabbing a gallon of milk, or even getting the mail, you are bound to get a few stares. With the polygamist women prancing around in prairie garb, we realize we are getting a few more stares too. Here's a great guy, "Amish Man Adam", holding a trophy hunk of butter at a recent in-depth training.... butter molding is tougher than it looks. I am above w/Adam helping to hang laundry.

But back to the polygamy...why do they wear 19th century dresses? After all, if it is truly a religious thing, why don't they wear robes, like Jesus? Or rustic wear, like John the Baptist? Or go buff, like Adam? Oh wait, they didn't think too well while going buff, now did they?

A CBS story says it evolved over time, but is loosely based on 19th century pioneering Mormon attire. Supposedly the women have no say on their dresses except for the color, which is still limited to pastel. ((I pity the poor woman who dared to pick red)) This cuts down on individuality and rivalry, or so they say. But, we dress that way to bring attention to Minnesota's role in the pioneering West. Here are more pictures from a recent workshop:

Here's Alyssa doing laundry.


And Paula is bored with butter.

Here's Bradley and Queen Pauline, literally cranking out some yummy mint ice cream


And, there's Buffy, Ellen Abdul, and out-of-costume Anna making desecated vegetables. (Which is like a soup boullion that pioneers would make to take West)

Special thanks to Molly O'Grady... for putting on a great workshop and teaching us to make everything from pioneer food to cheese to sourdough. I believe we all left with a newfound thankfulness for grocery stores, modern attire, and the fun we have at our own compound!