Wedding Flashback: 1930's

The wedding market was booming in the 1920's leading the way for most of the traditions we still hold onto for weddings today. Most of this came to a halt during the Great Depression in the 1930's.

Most families being thrust into poverty during the Great Depression meant that there wasn't funding for elaborate ceremonies and parties like people had seen before. Instead, planned elopements were the thing to do, because that's what families could afford. Most couples would be married by a Justice of the Peace in his home or office (a predecessor to courthouse weddings).

Those who could afford it settled for a simple, quaint wedding either in their church or in their very own living room. Close family and friends would gather together and celebrate the couple's new life and would finish with lunch or an early dinner, giving the couple plenty of time to be alone in their new home. 

Dresses, veils, and bouquets were simpler as well. Most brides still opted for the traditional white most wearing short, plain, form-fitting dresses. Veils still had a cap, but most were adorned with flowers or lace. Bouquets were often gathered that morning from flower gardens or public parks.

Grooms loved to wear their hats- fedoras were a man's fashion statement of choice, but of course they couldn't wear them during the ceremony or the meal!