TOP THREE: Clark County Ohio River Sweep EVENT: Lunch and Learn series at Carnegie

Fashion breathes new life into steamboat museum

Fashion forward, backward

JUNE 16, 2016 — Issue 118A News and Tribune Publication

EDITORJason Thomas

DESIGNClaire Munn

STORYElizabeth DePompei

PHOTOGRAPHYTyler Stewart

WHERE TO FIND SOIN:• ON RACKS: We offer free copies of SoIn at numerous hotels and restau-rants around Clark and Floyd counties.• IN YOUR PAPER: Every Thursday in the News and Tribune• ONLINE: newsandtribune.com /soin• ON FACEBOOK: facebook.com/YourSoInWeekly• ON TWITTER: @newsandtribune

2 | THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016 | SOIN

An 1800s party ensemble, foreground, was a frillier gown appropriate for everyday wear. The summer ensemble, worn through the era, is an example of what would be worn for an outing. The dresses are on display at the Howard Steamboat Museum. | STAFF PHOTO BY TYLER STEWART

More unique Southern Indiana stories.NEXT SOIN:

ON THE COVER:

LOUISVILLE — Production Simple has announced that St. Paul and the Broken Bones will perform at Iroquois Amphitheater at 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10. Tickets go on sale Friday, June 17, at noon.

“Sea of Noise,” the second full-length album by St. Paul and the Bro-ken Bones, marks a quantum leap in sound and style for the high-voltage Birmingham, Alabama-based band, a Production Simple news release stated.

Produced by Paul Butler and re-corded at Nashville’s Sound Empo-rium, the group’s sophomore effort features an expanded eight-piece

lineup of the widely praised soul-based rock unit. Longtime members Paul Janeway (lead vocals), Jesse Phillips (bass, guitar), Browan Lol-lar (guitars), Andrew Lee (drums), Al Gamble (keyboards), and Allen Branstetter (trumpet) are joined by Ja-son Mingledorff (saxophone, clarinet, flute), and Chad Fisher (trombone).

The collection of new original songs is the group’s first release on RECORDS, a joint venture of

SONGS Publishing, winner of ASCAP’s 2016 independent publisher of the year award, and veteran label executive Barry Weiss.

“Sea of Noise” is a successor to the Broken Bones’ 2013 debut album “Half the City,” which introduced the group’s blazing mating of ’60s soul fire — daubed with latter-day influ-ences like Sly Stone, David Bowie, and Prince — to Janeway’s impas-sioned singing and writing.

Bone-rattling act comes to LouisvilleSOIN THE KNOW• WHAT: St. Paul and the Broken

Bones• WHEN: 8 p.m. Sept. 10• WHERE: Iroquois Amphithe-

ater• INFO: Purchase tickets in

person at The Iroquois Amphi-theater Box office, by phone 877-987-6487 or on line at ticketfly.com.

St. Paul and the Broken Bones will perform at the Iroquois Amphitheater on Sept. 10. | PHOTO PROVIDED

Who knew the Howards were so en vogue?

In today’s centerpiece you’ll read about an exhibit at the Howard Steamboat Museum featuring ... fashion. Not exactly what you’d associate with the 19th century ship-build-ing magnates.

But it makes perfect sense: “Because the Howards were noted for having soirees, parties and sometimes they’d have musical productions in the parlor over there with the piano and musi-cians, so this gives a good idea of what people wore at the time,” Keith Norrington, museum director and cura-tor, told writer Elizabeth DePompei for today’s story.

As visitors travel from room to room, the shape, color and fabrics of each dress reflect how fashion changed through the later half of the 19th century, DePompei explains.

Such a cool idea for a display.Dressmaker Ruby Grace Miller, who has

roots in Jeffersonville but lives in Boston, spent oodles of time researching what fashion would have looked like between 1875 and 1900. Miller hopes people see that the dresses were ornate and fine, but still realistic for every day wear. In fact, she’s looking forward to wearing the dresses herself, according to DePompei.

And the exhibit is more than just pretty dresses. It also highlights the important role women played in history.

I’d get all dressed up for that.

— Jason Thomas is the editor of SoIn. He can be reached by phone at 812-206-2127 or email at jason.thomas@newsand-tribune.com. Follow him on Twitter: @ScoopThomas.

Getting dressed up with the Howards

JASON THOMASSoIn Editor

Tweet or Facebook us and your idea could be our next SoIn feature.

follow us on TWITTER @newsandtribune FACEBOOK/YourSoInWeekly

BROADWAY IN THE KNOBS

IN THE SWING OF THINGS• WHAT: ‘42nd Street’ ahead of festival• WHEN: 6:30 p.m. tonight, June 16, Friday, June

17• WHERE: Floyd Central High School• COST: Adults, $12; senior citizens, $10; stu-

dents, $6• INFO: floydcentraltheatre.org; 812-542-2284The theater students at Floyd Central are getting

ready to hit the road with their mammoth pro-duction of the Broadway musical, “42nd Street.” The students were invited to present the show at the International Thespian Festival in Lincoln Nebraska the last week of June. To prepare for the task of taking such a large production on the road, they will present “42nd Street” two more times at Floyd Central for the local public. 

• WHAT: Concert in the Park• WHEN: 7 p.m. Fridays• WHERE: Warder Park, Spring Street and Court

Avenue, JeffersonvilleOn Friday evenings you can find the Warder Park

gazebo replete with a brass band and surround-ed by a crowd of all ages. Some bands pay tribute to the people who served in the armed forces and it makes for a lump-in-your-throat moment — genuinely patriotic and heartfelt. It’s a slice of Americana. Performing Friday: River Cities Con-cert Band; marches, show tunes and standards.

— Clark-Floyd Counties Convention & Tourism Bureau

GOTTA GO: Interested in seeing your event in our 3 To Go? Email SoIn Editor Jason Thomas at jason.thomas@newsandtribune.com

• WHAT: Annual Clark County Ohio River Sweep 

• WHEN: 8:30 a.m. Saturday, June 18• WHERE: Check-in stations at Clarksville’s

Ashland Park and at the Falls of the Ohio State Park

• INFO: 812-243-8233 ext. 101Scouts, community/civic /student organiza-

tions, families and individuals are needed to help clean the banks of the Ohio River. The event will end at 11:30 a.m. Trash bags, gloves and bottled water will be provided and each volunteer will receive a free T-shirt. The Ohio River Sweep is a riverbank cleanup event that extends the entire length of the Ohio River and beyond. More than 3,000 miles of shore-line will be combed for trash and debris. 

| 3SOIN | THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

1 SWEEPIN' UP THE RIVER3 TO GO Where to go and be seen in Southern Indiana

2 3

EFFERSONVILLE — The 22-room, three-story Howard family mansion that towers over East Market Street in Jeffersonville has been given new life thanks to a piece of history’s fabric that’s

taking center stage: fashion. Unlike anything the Howard Steamboat Museum has had before, a new

exhibit showcases 10 Victorian-era dresses carefully placed on manne-quins and staged throughout the mansion. As visitors travel from room to room, the shape, color and fabrics of each dress reflect how fashion changed through the later half of the 19th century. It’s a picture of 1800s Clark County life that previously could only been seen in black and white photographs.

Dressmaker Ruby Grace Miller said she spent a lot of time researching the era and what fashion would have been like in Jeffersonville. She fo-cused on the time between 1875 and 1900, and paid attention to the early 1890s when the Howard home was built.

“And I think the goal was sort of to show what the clothes looked like, what the clothes could have looked like and then how they progressed,” said Miller, who has roots in Jeffersonville but now lives in Boston.

Doing her researchAfter examining garments of the time, Miller

said she decided what she wanted the dressed to look like and what their purposes would be, whether it’s a gown for a ball or a dress for a walk by the water. Then she decided what fab-rics could bring her visions to life, like cotton and silk, and sometimes rayon.

One of Miller’s favorite dresses is a striped, form-fitting promenade gown made of silk that represents a shift from the fluffy, bustle-shaped dresses pre-dating the 1870s. Miller hopes peo-ple see that the dresses were ornate and fine, but still realistic for every day wear. In fact, she’s looking forward to wearing the dresses herself after the exhibit ends on July 10.

Keith Norrington, museum director and curator, said the museum jumped at the chance to have Miller custom make dresses for the ex-hibit. Norrington said people most often associate the Howards with their steamboat legacy. The family’s shipyard was just across the street from the mansion where modern-day Jeffboat sits. With fashion, Norrington hopes people can get a better sense of how the Howards lived day to day.

“Because the Howards were noted for having soirees, parties and sometimes they’d have musical productions in the parlor over there with the piano and musicians, so this gives a good idea of what people wore at the time,” Norrington said.

Women’s roleJeanne Burke, Clark County historian, said the dress exhibit

also highlights a group of people often forgotten in history.

By ELIZABETH DEPOMPEIelizabeth.depompei@newsandtribune.com

IF YOU GO• WHAT: Victorian clothing exhibit at the Howard Steamboat

Museum• WHERE: 1101 East Market Street in Jeffersonville• WHEN: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 3 p.m.;

Sunday 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. until July 10• ADMISSION: Between $5 and $7; free for children under 6• MORE INFO: howardsteamboatmuseum.org

RIGHT: Evening gowns, circa 1875-1880, were very elaborate, popularly adorned with train. | STAFF PHOTO BY TYLER STEWART

Stitching a historyVictorian-era dresses fill 1890s Howard mansion

SEE DRESSES, PAGE 8

J

EFFERSONVILLE — The 22-room, three-story Howard family mansion that towers over East Market Street in Jeffersonville has been given new life thanks to a piece of history’s fabric that’s

taking center stage: fashion. Unlike anything the Howard Steamboat Museum has had before, a new

exhibit showcases 10 Victorian-era dresses carefully placed on manne-quins and staged throughout the mansion. As visitors travel from room to room, the shape, color and fabrics of each dress reflect how fashion changed through the later half of the 19th century. It’s a picture of 1800s Clark County life that previously could only been seen in black and white photographs.

Dressmaker Ruby Grace Miller said she spent a lot of time researching the era and what fashion would have been like in Jeffersonville. She fo-cused on the time between 1875 and 1900, and paid attention to the early 1890s when the Howard home was built.

“And I think the goal was sort of to show what the clothes looked like, what the clothes could have looked like and then how they progressed,” said Miller, who has roots in Jeffersonville but now lives in Boston.

Doing her researchAfter examining garments of the time, Miller

said she decided what she wanted the dressed to look like and what their purposes would be, whether it’s a gown for a ball or a dress for a walk by the water. Then she decided what fab-rics could bring her visions to life, like cotton and silk, and sometimes rayon.

One of Miller’s favorite dresses is a striped, form-fitting promenade gown made of silk that represents a shift from the fluffy, bustle-shaped dresses pre-dating the 1870s. Miller hopes peo-ple see that the dresses were ornate and fine, but still realistic for every day wear. In fact, she’s looking forward to wearing the dresses herself after the exhibit ends on July 10.

Keith Norrington, museum director and curator, said the museum jumped at the chance to have Miller custom make dresses for the ex-hibit. Norrington said people most often associate the Howards with their steamboat legacy. The family’s shipyard was just across the street from the mansion where modern-day Jeffboat sits. With fashion, Norrington hopes people can get a better sense of how the Howards lived day to day.

“Because the Howards were noted for having soirees, parties and sometimes they’d have musical productions in the parlor over there with the piano and musicians, so this gives a good idea of what people wore at the time,” Norrington said.

Women’s roleJeanne Burke, Clark County historian, said the dress exhibit

also highlights a group of people often forgotten in history.

By ELIZABETH DEPOMPEIelizabeth.depompei@newsandtribune.com

IF YOU GO• WHAT: Victorian clothing exhibit at the Howard Steamboat

Museum• WHERE: 1101 East Market Street in Jeffersonville• WHEN: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 3 p.m.;

Sunday 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. until July 10• ADMISSION: Between $5 and $7; free for children under 6• MORE INFO: howardsteamboatmuseum.org

RIGHT: Evening gowns, circa 1875-1880, were very elaborate, popularly adorned with train. | STAFF PHOTO BY TYLER STEWART

Stitching a historyVictorian-era dresses fill 1890s Howard mansion

SEE DRESSES, PAGE 8

J

ALBUMS: BOOKS:MOVIES:JUNE 21é “Vinegar Girl” by Anne Tyler

“Fatal Pursuit” by Martin Walker

JUNE 17é “The Getaway” by Red Hot

Chili Peppers “Earth” by Neil Young  

JUNE 17é “Finding Dory”

“Central Intelligence”

6 | THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016 | SoIn

ENTERTAINMENT This week's entertainment releases

“Minions”Movie Begins at Dusk

(Around 9:00pm)

Gateway Park500 Little League Blvd.

Lawn chairs and coolers welcome!

No smoking, alcohol, or pets

allowed in the park.

For our full schedule, call 812-283-5313 or visit

www.ClarksvilleParks.com

CONCERT: JUNE 17

MOVIE: JULY 1

“Radiotronic”7pm - 9pm

FREE Admission

Concessions will be available including Red’s

Comfort Foods & Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt

NEW ALBANY — The Carnegie Center for Art and History, 201 E. Spring St., New Albany, from noon to 1 p.m., Tuesday, June 21, will host author, retired columnist, and historian of the Parklands of Floyds Fork, Bob Hill, who will present the program “The Floyd Family of Ken-tuckiana,” as part of the Carnegie Center’s Lunch & Learn series.

John Floyd, who had surveyed land for George Washington and Patrick Henry in Virginia, is a totally forgotten local leader and pioneer who came out to the Falls of the Ohio with seven other surveyors in 1774 to try to settle land grant prob-

lems. He would help rescue Daniel Boone’s daughter, and became a very early Louisville leader. Thomas Jefferson would later name him Colonel of the Kentucky Militia, and Justice of the Peace and Surveyor for Jefferson County. Colonel John Floyd established a settlement along Beargrass Creek near what is now Breckenridge Lane in St. Matthews, in Louisville, fought battles with George Rogers Clark, and was killed in 1783 while on his way to Bullitt’s Lick. Floyds Fork, a tributary of the Salt River that runs 27 miles through

the eastern and southeastern por-tions of Jefferson County, Ky., was named in his honor. The Parklands of Floyds Fork covers about 4,000 acres of that land.

Bob Hill is an author and retired columnist and feature writer for the Courier-Journal, and a well-respected speaker on many topics. He and his wife Janet own Hidden Hill Nursery and Sculpture Garden in Utica, which specializes in rare and hard to find trees and plants. Hill is also the historian of the Parklands of Floyds Fork.

Presenting ‘Floyd Family of Kentuckiana’SOIN THE KNOW• WHAT: ‘The Floyd Family of

Kentuckiana’• WHEN: noon to 1 p.m. Tues-

day, June 21• WHERE: Carnegie Center for

Art and History, 201 E. Spring St., New Albany

• INFO: Free; registration is requested by calling 812-944-7336 or emailing Delesha Thomas at dthomas@carnegie-center.org.

 

Bob Hill at Hidden Hill Nursery. | PHOTO PROVIDED

LOCAL SOIN HAPPENINGS | 7SoIn | THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Feeling left out? Send your establishment’s and/or orga-nization’s upcoming events/new features/entertainment information to SoIn Editor Jason Thomas at jason.thomas@newsandtribune.com

Smokey’s Discount Tobacco Outlet

Smokey’s Discount Tobacco Outlet

Corydon • New Salisbury • Salem Jeffersonville • New Albany • Sellersburg

For all of your smoking needs

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Open 7 Days A WeekMonday - Saturday 8am to 9pm

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Stop in at any of our 6 locations for a wide selection of e-cigs, candles, dreamcatchers and more....

Dr. Grabow Pipes &

Accessories

Wide Assortment of Zippo Lighters

Hookah

Walk-in Humidor at 5 locations

LIVE MUSIC AT HUBER’S• WHERE: Huber’s Orchard, Winery & VineyardsWHEN/WHO: Saturday, June 18: Joe Dotson, 1 to 5 p.m.; Sun-

day, June 19: Dev & Dan, 1 to 5 p.m.

LIVE MUSIC AT WICK’S• WHAT: Live on State• WHERE: Wick’s, 225 State St., New AlbanyFriday, June 17: SPKR, Lacee & Wyndell; Saturday, June 18:

Rick Monroe; Saturday, June 25: Billy Davis Group

BANK STREET BREWHOUSE• WHAT: Live music• WHERE: Bank Street Brewhouse, 415 Bank St., New Albany• WHO/WHEN: Friday, June 17: Clint Ackerman 7 to 9 p.m.;

Saturday, June 18: Whisky Ginger, 7 to 9 p.m.; Friday, June 24: Joel Curtis, 7 to 9 p.m.; Saturday, June 25: The Blues Redemption, 7 to 9 p.m.

7 p.m. every Tuesday: Tuesday Night Talent Review

CORYDON LIVE• WHAT: Live country music• WHERE: 220 Hurst Lane, Corydon• INFO: Admission, adults $12;

children 6-12, $7; under 6, free. For tickets call 812-734-6288.

Saturday, June 18: The Lloyd Wood Show; Saturday June 25: Evan Twitty, Tracy Jo Brown, Josh Ranke

DOCUMENTARY• WHAT: Documentary Film Series• WHEN: 2 p.m. Saturday, June 18• WHERE: Jeffersonville Township

Public Library, 211 E. Court Ave., Jeffersonville

The library is welcoming adults, 18 and older, to attend to next Documentary Film Series, 2 p.m., Saturday, June 18, at the library. Watch a film about the late comedian Joan Rivers as she relentlessly pursued her career, and all the struggles and sacrifices that went along with being a storied enter-tainer. For more information on this program, visit jefflibrary.org, Events Calendar or call 812-285-5635.

RIVERSTAGE EVENTS• WHEN: 7 p.m. Fridays, 8 p.m.

Saturdays• WHERE: RiverStage, Spring Street

and Riverside Drive, Jeffersonville

Friday, June 17: Endless Summer Band w/ guest The De-cades; Saturday, June 18: Twilight Cinema Featuring: “The Spongebob Movie”; Friday, June 24: Velcro Pygmies w/ guest Thunderstruck; Saturday, June 25: Twilight Cinema Featuring: “The Avengers: Age of Ultron”

CONCERTS IN THE PARK• WHERE: Warder Park, Spring Street and Court Avenue,

Jeffersonville• WHEN: 7 p.m. FridaysFriday, June 17: River Cities Concert BandMarches, Show

Tunes and Standards; Friday, June 24: Early AutumnBig Band Swing; Friday, July 1: The Don Krekel OrchestraBig Band Swing Classics; Friday, July 8: Take Two and Com-pany featuring June Kelley-RoySultry Ballads, Bossa Novas, Swing Tunes & Contemporary Classics

BICENTENNIAL BEATS• WHAT: Bicentennial Park Summer Concert Series• WHEN: 7 p.m. Fridays• WHERE: Bicentennial Park, Spring and Pearl streets, New

AlbanyFriday, June 17: Fredrick the Younger with Reality Some-

thing; Friday, June 24: Vessel; Friday, July 1 (no show); Friday, July 8: Kentuckiana Blues Roadshow

8 | THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016 | SOIN

“I would like for the public to think about women’s

role in history and how important it actually was. There

were a lot of women who were powerful in their own

right, but they just remained kind of in the background,”

Burke said. “And most women who had their own busi-

nesses either ran grocery stores or they either made cloth-

ing or hats, and that was considered to be an all-right

business for women.”

Burke, who is also

Miller’s great aunt, said

she’s reminded of Loretta

Howard, the last fam-

ily member to live in

the mansion. Burke said

Loretta had a positive

impact on the steamboat

business, whether it was

office work or delivering steamboats to customers. “She would pile up the boats herself,” Burke said. “So

she was a real boom to the family business.”

Miller said people often overlook that when men were

away from the home during times of war, it was up to the

women to work and manage the household. She hopes

her exhibit will make visitors think more about women’s

role in history.

Inspiring a dressmakerIn Miller’s own story it was the women in her family

who inspired her to get into dressmaking. Her mother

and grandmother sewed and she started sewing when she

was about 13 years old.

“I was always interested in costuming, looking at

books online and things like that,” Miller said. “And

then I went to a sewing camp when I was like 12 and

then I knew it was possible to make these garments I

wanted so much.”

Miller was further inspired by the Jane Austen Festival

in Louisville where she wore some of her own creations.

She loves that dresses from different eras are detailed

and “more complicated.”

“It’s just a very different feeling, very graceful dresses

to wear usually,” she said. “And it’s just a lot of fun.

Each era is different.”

Now that she’s graduated high school, Miller said she

has more time to focus on dressmaking. She’ll be mak-

ing a dress for her first client this summer. Beyond that, she hopes to maybe one day create costumes for theater

productions or museums.

Clark County will be able to revel in Miller’s work

again in the fall. She’s currently working on dresses for

an exhibit at the Clark County Museum set to open this

fall. She said those dresses will focus on the periods

from 1816 to 1840 and 1900 to 1960. Until then, visitors

of the Howard Steamboat Museum can get lost in the era

in between, dresses and all.

DRESSES: Miller started sewing at 13

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

ONLINE• Follow Ruby Grace Miller's fashion blog at rubysrags.blogspot.com

• See more dress photos in an online gallery at newsandtribune.com

At the end of the 1880s, the style pictured above became much more slim and straight. This seaside dress would have been worn as daywear for walks and informal outings. The Howard Steamboat Museum in Jeffersonville is featuring a new exhibit showcases 10 Victorian-era dresses carefully placed on manne-quins and staged throughout the mansion. | STAFF PHOTOS BY TYLER STEWART

A jeweled scarf ring holds the neckline of an 1890s day dress. Dressmaker Ruby Grace Miller said she spent a lot of time researching the era and what fashion would have been like in Jeffersonville. The Victorian-era dresses are on display at the Howard Steamboat Museum.

A tea gown, 1893-96, is displayed in the dining room of the Howard Steamboat Museum. Tea gowns were popularized in the 1870s, were simple in design with luxurious fabrics. Dress-maker Ruby Grace Miller's work will appear in another exhibit later this year at the Clark County Museum.

This ball gown, circa 1899-1902, typically featured an overlay of Chantilly lace and were sleeveless by this time. Featured at the Howard Steamboat Museum in Jeffersonville, dressmaker Ruby Grace Miller said the goal of the exhibit was to "show what the clothes looked like, what the clothes could have looked like and then how they progressed."