A glimpse back in time: 106-year-old wedding dress donated to EG Historical Museum

The average cost of a wedding in the United States last year was just under $26,000, according to the website www.costofwedding. com. The average cost of a wedding dress, according to www.theknot.com, was just over $1,500. But those are just numbers. In reality, their values are unmeasurable, especially when they become a family heirloom like they did for the Keppers’ family. Thanks to them, that treasure can now also be enjoyed by others as the family has donated the wedding dress to the Eagle Grove Historical Museum.

Henry and Catherine (Degen) Keppers were married on October 10, 1912 at St. John’s Catholic Church in Clarion. Twenty-one-year-old Catherine’s dress was of great elegance, featuring a high lace neck and a cinched waist. After the wedding, the dress was set aside and carefully preserved.

After the wedding, the couple made their home on a farm located about seven miles southeast of Eagle Grove. They eventually had six children - Roger, Helen, Leona, Lillian, Harold, and Bernice.

Years later they moved to Eagle Grove where they built a home on East Broadway. Their son, Harold, and his wife, LaVonne, took over the family farm operation where they raised seven children of their own, one of them being Lori (Keppers) Gascho, who eventually brought her grandmother’s (Catherine) wedding dress to the place the family all agreed it belonged - back in Wright County where it all began.

For the full story, see this week's Eagle Grove Eagle. Subscribe by calling 1-800-558-1244 ext 122 or email Deb at circulation@midamericapub.com or by clicking here.