Maryann Perreira Osborne’s wedding dress, 1913. Photo credit: Robert Dominy.
It’s the final weekend to view “Tying the Knot: Bridal Fashion Unveiled” at the Kelley House Museum! Monday August 31, 2026 is the last day to view the seven pieces of historic clothing worn by Mendocino brides, ranging from the mid-1860s to 1978.
After “Tying the Knot” is deinstalled, the dresses will be returned to the Kelley House archive, nicknamed “The Vault” for preservation care. The fragile, historic material requires limited exposure to touch, light, and fluctuations to humidity and temperature. The Vault is a fully climate-controlled archive, which keeps all the archival materials at the ideal humidity and temperature level. Additionally, the dresses are stored in archival acid-free boxes and paper, which limits the natural degradation of the fabric over time.
The clothing featured in “Tying the Knot” are a part of the over 70+ pieces of historic clothing collected in The Vault. This collection ranges from petticoats to purses, children’s baptismal gowns to Victorian gowns worn at English royal courts. The oldest item is an infant undershirt from circa 1860. The newest item is a jacket given to Murder, She Wrote crew members from 1984. A wide range of items!
After “Tying the Knot” closes, you can learn more about the dresses (and the other 10,000+ items in The Vault!) on the Kelley House online archive. Located on the Kelley House Museum website under the “Research” tab, you can search the archival catalog and view information about each record. Each wedding dress now has a new photo included in its record, courtesy of photographer Robert Dominy.
The Kelley House Museum is open Thursday-Monday, 11am to 3pm. Visit our event calendar for a walking tour schedule.