Demorest, Mme. (Ellen Louise Curtis), 1824-1898 (1824-1898)
Dates
- Existence: 1824-1898
Biography
Mme. Demorest was a publisher of fashion periodicals. She began her career as the owner of a millinery shop in Saratoga Springs, NY, at the age of 18. At 34 she married William Jennings Demorest, a dry-goods purveyor, and the couple founded their fashion business with a shop on Broadway in 1860, "Madame Demorest's Emporium of Fashions." The couple expanded to publishing in the same decade, with titles such as Mme. Demorest's Mirror of Fashions, Demorest's Young America, and Demorest's Illustrated Monthly. In addition to fashion plates advertising the fashions of figures such as Empress Eugenie, the magazines were the first to feature paper dressmaking patterns for at-home use, an innovation of Mme. Demorest. The Demorests were champions of women's rights, featuring the writing of Louisa May Alcott and Julia Ward Howe in their publications. Jennie June, a.k.a. Jane Cunningham Croly, was a longtime editor of Demorest's Illustrated Monthly, and went on to found the Sorosis (later the New York Newswomen's Club) with the help of Mme. Demorest.
Places
Found in 6 Collections and/or Records:
Demorest collection, a.k.a. Ransom Family collection, 1854-1909
This collection is comprised of images of members of the Demorest family, publications by William Jennings Demorest and Mme. (Ellen Louise Curtis) Demorest, medals presented by Demorest Medal Contests, and correspondence to W. Jennings Demorest.
Demorest's Illustrated Monthly Magazine, vol. 3, 1867, 1867
This folder contains a bound copy of Vol. 3 of Demorest's Illustrated Monthly Magazine, the Ladies' Literary Conservator, and Mme. Demorest's Mirror of Fashions, 1867. Front cover bears inscription: "To Annie Meate, from Sister Nell."
Demorest's Monthly Magazine, vol. 18, 1882, 1882
This folder contains Vol. 18 of Demorest's Monthly Magazine, 1882. Editors are listed as W. Jennings Demorest, Mme. Demorest, and Jennie June (a.k.a. Jane Cunningham Croly). Includes an engraving of William Jennings Demorest.
Framed images, 1854
Medals, 1855-1909, 1855-1909
This box contains 10 medals presented to Mme Demorest and William Jennings Demorest for fashion designs, illustrations, patterns, and technological inventions including a miniature gas stove and sewing machine improvements. Awarding institutions include The Holland Society of New York, American Institute New-York, Columbia University, 1853-1908. 1 cased medal presented to William Curtis Demorest by the Hudson-Fulton Celebration, 1909.