Rosecliff, the gleaming white terra cotta palace built by the Nevada silver heiress Theresa Fair Oelrichs in 1902, was inspired by the Grand Trianon at Versailles and built by architect Stanford White. The mansion was conceived as a stage set for the dinners, balls and costume parties that made up the social whirl of Newport during the Gilded Age.

In its 100 years, it has seen the sweep of fashion history, usually as worn by the grand dames of society at galas, garden parties, and other exotic upper-crust functions. The Preservation Society of Newport County captures this fashion as part of its annual exhibits, displayed in the rooms that once hosted the wealthiest of America.

Each year, the Preservation Society stages an exhibit in the Lesley Bogert Crawford costume vitrines at Rosecliff, highlighting a selection of fashions from its collection of approximately 4,000.

The theme of the 2003 costume exhibit was Exotic Evenings: Eastern Influence on Western Dress. This show’s focus was on the use of exotic fabrics, prints, and design in evening wear from the collections of The Preservation Society of Newport County. The exhibit featured 17 costumes ranging in date from 1865 to the 1990s. Many of the pieces featured were Near Eastern or Oriental in theme by western designers who were looking East for inspiration. These were interspersed with actual Oriental robes and an Indian sari.

The 2002 exhibit, entitled Party Fashions: Formal Fanfare to Fancy Dress, featured seventeen costumes, ranging in date from 1760 to 2000. Among the highlights were a Mardi Gras Carnival Queen’s dress worn by Mrs. Marjorie Monroe Colomb, a niece of Mr. and Mrs. J. Edgar Monroe, when she appeared as Queen of the Proteus Ball in New Orleans in 1950. There was also a 1760s robe a la francaise that was used during the 19th and early 20th centuries for fancy dress in Newport. From the 1924 season there was a Cleopatra fancy dress worn by Mrs. Nicholas Brown to a costume ball in Newport.

Some of the most exotic pieces in the Society’s collection are from Mrs. Margaret Fahnestock Drummond-Wolff, an international fashion icon of the 1920s and 30s who maintained a summer residence in Newport.

The guardian of Rosecliff (Staff Photo)

After several changes of ownership, Rosecliff was purchased in the 1940s by Mr. and Mrs. J. Edgar Monroe, and then donated to the Preservation Society of Newport County in 1971—assuring the continued preservation of one of Newport’s architectural landmarks.

These annual fashion exhibits ensure that touring Rosecliff not only helps you experience the magnificent archetecture of the Gilded Age, but also the costume and pagentry of the era.

Photo of Fortnuy evening dress courtesy of the Preservation Society of Newport. Regular tours at Rosecliff are led by tour guides, with a new tour beginning every 10-15 minutes from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Guided tours are approximately 45-50 minutes long. Open dates are seasonal, daily through the summertime. Call 401-847-1000 for more information or visit the Preservation Society of Newport County at http://www.newportmansions.org/

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