DRESS
Datecirca 1960
Dimensions95 x 42 cm
Object numberHF.10.38.47
DescriptionTeal raw silk sleeveless dress with blue faille silk lining. There is a high, round front neckline and a scooped low back. The neck and back line are edged with round silver plastic embellishments. The dress is both hand and machine stitched with darts on the front, under the arms and parallel to the zipper on the back.Narrative
Marion Ella DeBlois, (nee Newberry), was born in 1893 to Arthur and Ella (nee Malcolm) Newberry in Charlottetown, PEI. The family lived at 10-12 Haviland Street, Charlottetown. Marion's childhood and those of her sisters, Adele and Florence, was well documented by their father, an amateur photographer. Many of Arthur Newberry's photographs are in the provincial archives.
On 15 June 1915, Marion married George DesBrisay DeBlois, a wholesale merchant and exported, and President of DeBlois Brothers. The couple had three children – Robert, Gordon, and Helen. In 1933, her husband was appointed the 27th Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island. During his time as Lieutenant Governor, Marion attended the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1937 and hosted the King and Queen during their 1939 visit to Charlottetown. In 1959, one year after her husband's death, Marion hosted Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip for an informal luncheon at her summer home in Grand Tracadie.
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