Oysterville’s Will Espy, 1904

It’s almost a joke in our house that when I ask Nyel what he’s going to wear (to a party, to a meeting, to a funeral) he invariably answers “Levis.” More often than not that is true, although sometimes he adds a sports coat, shirt and tie so that Levis segue into a ‘Montana Tuxedo.’ And, he does have several relatively new suits and even a traditional tuxedo if need be. But, truth to tell, there is seldom the need here on the Peninsula.

So, the headline in Wednesday’s paper caught my eye: ‘Peninsula Look’ shows off men’s fashion on Jan. 21. The Peninsula Look” described as “the first and probably last Peninsula men’s fashion show,” is a fund-raising event for the Peninsula Players. The article goes on to quote producer Robert Brake who advises, “This is not a black-tie event. Tacky wardrobe is not only acceptable, but encouraged…” I have the feeling that anyone wearing a Montana Tuxedo would be seriously overdressed.

I’m of two minds about the sartorial splendors here at the beach. On the one hand, it’s really lovely to live in place where blue jeans are almost always acceptable. I, for one, have various categories of Levis – pretty much unfaded for good; faded but not threadbare for out-and-about; paper thin and shredding for home and garden. On the other hand, there is so seldom a ‘dress up’ occasion that my wardrobe has become severely diminished in the little-black-dress and ball-gown departments. Years go by that I have little or no incentive to shop for clothes and the cumulative effect is appalling.

Senator H.A. Espy at his disk, 1911

Back in the 1940s and ‘50s (and probably long before that), my grandfather had three suits. They were always three-pieced suits of excellent quality and cut. The newest was reserved for special occasions (especially business or social affairs off the Peninsula); the second best was for everyday use; the oldest was the suit (three pieces, but perhaps from several suits, plus his old fedora) he used when working in the garden or going out onto the oyster beds (with the addition of hip boots.)

H.A. Espy and Charlie Nelson, Oysterville Centennial 1954

He was retired in those years and I have no concept what his ‘working uniform’ was back when he ran his dairy farm. We have no photographs to give us a hint. In those days, most photographs were taken on special occasions, no doubt, and people wanted to appear in their ‘Sunday Best.’

Last Wednesday at the Community Historians gathering, someone asked Collections Manager Barbara Minard what the ‘mosts’ and ‘leasts’ were in the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum’s collection. She said that, like most small history museums, they have a plethora of bridal gowns and a dearth of men’s clothing from the years of the Great Depression – which, when you think about it, makes perfect sense.

Bridal gowns are usually one-time-use items, are carefully saved, and are eventually offered to a museum because they are too good to throw away. Men’s best clothing, especially during the Depression years, was often converted by the thrifty housewife into something she or the children could wear and, perhaps repurposed even after that use had run its course. Good examples of men’s clothing during the “Hard Times” era are hard to come by.

I look forward to seeing what fashions “The Peninsula Look” has to show us next Wednesday. And I wonder if any of them will find their way into museum collections of the future.