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IN LOVING MEMORY OF Elizabeth S. Brown
Elizabeth S.
Brown
d. May 19, 2015
Elizabeth S. Brown's Obituary
Noted fashion historian, Elizabeth Logan Schmeck Brown died on May 19, 2015 at her home in Skillman, NJ with family at her side.
Known to her friends as Rikki, Elizabeth was born on September 7, 1918 in Ancon Canal Zone, Panama, the daughter of Henry Penuel Schmeck and Pansy Blossom Logan. Henry was a civil engineer, employed by the Panama Canal Company during the construction of the canal; Pansy was a proper Kentucky belle.
Her family lived in California and Oklahoma, then settled in Texas, where she attended the University of Texas at Austin. Elizabeth transferred to Cornell University in Ithaca NY, which became one of the most significant moves of her lifetime. She loved Cornell, and there began a life-long fascination and love affair with fashion and fashion history. She developed that interest more deeply, spending a year in New York City working at Lord & Taylor and attending the Art Student's League. Upon returning to Cornell, she received her Bachelors' Degree in 1940 and her Masters' Degree in 1945. She taught textiles and clothing and curated the university's extensive costume collection. It was at Cornell that she met her husband Walter D. Brown, who was teaching Naval students in the V-12 program during WWII. They married at Cornell's Sage Chapel and were together for 62 years, until Walter died in 2006.
Her passion for costumes and all things related, especially sewing machines and patterns, began to manifest itself at this time and continued throughout her life. After Cornell, Elizabeth and her husband lived in Solomons Island, MD, then Pittsburgh, PA. They raised four boys, born between 1946 and 1953. The family lived in Chicago, IL, Philadelphia, PA, and finally settled near Princeton, NJ in the 1960's.
Elizabeth was a teacher at heart, and dedicated her life to enriching the lives of her family and community. Her vast knowledge of fashion and textiles was indispensable not only to her own professional development but also to the many institutions that she contributed to and advised. Never content to be a bystander, she was an active participant in many professional organizations, especially the Costume Society of America, of which she was a founding member. She was named a Fellow of the Costume Society in 1992. She served on the CSA Board of Directors and as the Parliamentarian for many years.
She worked in the fashion industry for McCalls, Butterick, and Uno. She lectured, appraised, and amassed a huge collection of costumes, sewing machines and all manner of related objects. In her collecting !!!!, she had a loving co-conspirator in her late husband Walt, and her sons David, Ned, Ken and Walt, Jr. indulged her interests and supported them. Ultimately, she amassed a renowned clothing collection which is now housed at several institutions, including The Elizabeth Schmeck Brown Gallery at Cornell University, the Smithsonian Institution, Houston Community College, the Fashion Institute of Technology, The Museum of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the University of Rhode Island, and numerous others. Her sewing machine collection grew to the hundreds and was featured by the International Sewing Machine Collectors Association, of which she was a proud member.
She was an inspiration to so many in her field and reveled in meeting new members and continuing to learn from everyone she met. She also belonged to a panoply of organizations that supported women in colleges, Cornell alumni, and the value of family education in schools.
She was an active member of many organizations including the American Association of University Women, Princeton United Methodist Church, New Jersey Association Family and Consumer Sciences, American Association Family and Consumer Sciences, Van Harlingen Historical Society, Historical Society of Princeton, International Textile and Apparel Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, New Jersey Association of Museums, International Sewing Machine Collectors Society, Costume and Textile Group of NJ, American Association of State and Local History, Cornell Alumni Association, Cornell Women's Club, Phi Kappa Phi, Kappa Omicron Nu, and Alpha Lambda Delta. She served as Chair of the Somerset County School Boards Association and President of the Montgomery Township Board of Education.
She is survived by son David H. Brown and Wendy L. Brown, and their son David M. Brown and his wife, Heather P. Brown; son Walter D. Brown, Jr.; son Ned L. Brown and Karen Murphy; and son Kenneth M. Brown and Rebecca G. Brown, and their children, Johanna, Peter, and Sarah.
Memorial contributions in Elizabeth's name may be made to the Costume Society of America Endowment, PO Box 1723, Mendocino, CA 95460-1723.
A private ceremony will be held in the Princeton Cemetery.
Known to her friends as Rikki, Elizabeth was born on September 7, 1918 in Ancon Canal Zone, Panama, the daughter of Henry Penuel Schmeck and Pansy Blossom Logan. Henry was a civil engineer, employed by the Panama Canal Company during the construction of the canal; Pansy was a proper Kentucky belle.
Her family lived in California and Oklahoma, then settled in Texas, where she attended the University of Texas at Austin. Elizabeth transferred to Cornell University in Ithaca NY, which became one of the most significant moves of her lifetime. She loved Cornell, and there began a life-long fascination and love affair with fashion and fashion history. She developed that interest more deeply, spending a year in New York City working at Lord & Taylor and attending the Art Student's League. Upon returning to Cornell, she received her Bachelors' Degree in 1940 and her Masters' Degree in 1945. She taught textiles and clothing and curated the university's extensive costume collection. It was at Cornell that she met her husband Walter D. Brown, who was teaching Naval students in the V-12 program during WWII. They married at Cornell's Sage Chapel and were together for 62 years, until Walter died in 2006.
Her passion for costumes and all things related, especially sewing machines and patterns, began to manifest itself at this time and continued throughout her life. After Cornell, Elizabeth and her husband lived in Solomons Island, MD, then Pittsburgh, PA. They raised four boys, born between 1946 and 1953. The family lived in Chicago, IL, Philadelphia, PA, and finally settled near Princeton, NJ in the 1960's.
Elizabeth was a teacher at heart, and dedicated her life to enriching the lives of her family and community. Her vast knowledge of fashion and textiles was indispensable not only to her own professional development but also to the many institutions that she contributed to and advised. Never content to be a bystander, she was an active participant in many professional organizations, especially the Costume Society of America, of which she was a founding member. She was named a Fellow of the Costume Society in 1992. She served on the CSA Board of Directors and as the Parliamentarian for many years.
She worked in the fashion industry for McCalls, Butterick, and Uno. She lectured, appraised, and amassed a huge collection of costumes, sewing machines and all manner of related objects. In her collecting !!!!, she had a loving co-conspirator in her late husband Walt, and her sons David, Ned, Ken and Walt, Jr. indulged her interests and supported them. Ultimately, she amassed a renowned clothing collection which is now housed at several institutions, including The Elizabeth Schmeck Brown Gallery at Cornell University, the Smithsonian Institution, Houston Community College, the Fashion Institute of Technology, The Museum of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the University of Rhode Island, and numerous others. Her sewing machine collection grew to the hundreds and was featured by the International Sewing Machine Collectors Association, of which she was a proud member.
She was an inspiration to so many in her field and reveled in meeting new members and continuing to learn from everyone she met. She also belonged to a panoply of organizations that supported women in colleges, Cornell alumni, and the value of family education in schools.
She was an active member of many organizations including the American Association of University Women, Princeton United Methodist Church, New Jersey Association Family and Consumer Sciences, American Association Family and Consumer Sciences, Van Harlingen Historical Society, Historical Society of Princeton, International Textile and Apparel Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, New Jersey Association of Museums, International Sewing Machine Collectors Society, Costume and Textile Group of NJ, American Association of State and Local History, Cornell Alumni Association, Cornell Women's Club, Phi Kappa Phi, Kappa Omicron Nu, and Alpha Lambda Delta. She served as Chair of the Somerset County School Boards Association and President of the Montgomery Township Board of Education.
She is survived by son David H. Brown and Wendy L. Brown, and their son David M. Brown and his wife, Heather P. Brown; son Walter D. Brown, Jr.; son Ned L. Brown and Karen Murphy; and son Kenneth M. Brown and Rebecca G. Brown, and their children, Johanna, Peter, and Sarah.
Memorial contributions in Elizabeth's name may be made to the Costume Society of America Endowment, PO Box 1723, Mendocino, CA 95460-1723.
A private ceremony will be held in the Princeton Cemetery.
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