Object Record

Images

1 of 1977

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Additional Images [15]

Metadata

Object ID #

1986.027.001

Object Name

Gown, Baptismal

Title

Thomson Family Christening Gown

Lexicon category

3: Personal Artifacts

Date

1868?

Year Range from

1868

Year Range to

1886

Artist

Unidentified seamstress

Made

Unknown

Place of Origin

Ontario

Description

This cotton Christening gown has a lace v-shaped area at the front yoke area of the bodice. There is a drop-down collar at the back of the gown. It has two old darn mends on it. There is darning elsewhere as well. The skirt front has an elaborate embroidery area. There is eyelet lacework (Ayrshire embroidery work) on the decorative waistband and at the bottom of the sleeves. The gown is made of white cotton fabric, and the embroidery is all done in white as well. The long skirt ends with a serrated-style hem, embroidered in white. The back closure has a single mother-of-pearl button, and two tiestrings (at the neck). The skirt is very tightly gathered where it joins the waistband.

Provenance

The Christening dress was worn by the children of John and Margaret Thomson. Mrs. Thomson (born 18__) was formerly Margaret Mathieson. It is unknown if she stitched and embroidered the dress, or a female relative did. The children who wore this dress were:
George Thomson b. 1868
Elizabeth (Thomson) Harkness
Henry Thomson
Louisa (Thomson) Henry
Minnie (Thomson) Henry
Ralph Thomson
Tom Thomson b. 1877
Margaret (Thomson) Tweedale
James Brodie Thomson
Fraser Thomson (b. 1886)

One of the sons to wear this gown, Tom Thomson (b. August 5, 1877), became a famous Canadian landscape painter. He was born at Claremont, Ontario, before his family moved to Sydenham Township, Grey County.

A letter transcribed and added in the back of the updated REMINISCENCES OF NORTH SYDENHAM book (Allan Ross, 1924), written by a friend of Tom Thomson's, provides some information about the Thomson family and mentions that Tom's parents moved to Owen Sound in 1905.

Tom Thomson attended the S.S. No. 13 Leith School.

In the 1901 census of Sydenham Township:
Lot 36, Concession A
Thomson, John, b. Feb. 3, 1840 Ont. age 61 Presbyterian Farmer
His wife, Margaret, was born Nov. 3, 1842, age 58, born in P.E.
Louisa Thomson was born July 4, 1873 and was 27 years old in 1901.
Minnie Thomson was born April 16, 1875, age 25
Thomas Thomson b. Aug. 5, 1877, age 23
Ralph Thomson, b. March 19, 1880, age 21
Margaret Thomson, Jan. 22, 1884, age 17
Fraser Thomson, b. July 15, 1886, age 14
Henrietta Matheson (sister-in-law of John's), b. Feb. 14, 1853 in P.E.
William Bone, a Farm Labourer, 25 years of age (b. Dec. 30, 1873) was also living with the family.

Collection

Textiles, 19th-c Clothing Collection, Baby Unisex/Unknown

Material

Cotton/Embroidery Thread/Thread/Mother-of-Pearl

Dimensions

W-37.402 L-44.488 inches

Found