She Bought Herself Out of Slavery, Then Dressed the First Lady

Elizabeth Keckley was born into slavery in Virginia in 1818 and taught to sew by her mother. In November 1855 she paid twelve hundred dollars for her own freedom and her son's, most of it borrowed from the white women whose dresses she made in St. Louis. Six years later she was the most sought-after dressmaker in Washington and Mary Lincoln's closest confidante in the White House. Then in 1868 she wrote a book about it, and the book cost her almost everything she had built. This episode covers the purple velvet dress at the Smithsonian, the Contraband Relief Association she founded in 1862, the Old Clothes Scandal of 1867, the memoir that ended her career, the Lincoln assassination relics she refused to sell, and the grave marker that went missing for fifty years. ------------- Find our Podcast on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music or where ever you listen to your podcasts. ------------- Watch our other videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM3OqLHVo6eGkl86dsCJlWdQg9UNuNoWm https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM3OqLHVo6eH5hSfUOdjVzGLZxfJOKbeG -------------- 💬 Which fashion icon should we explore next? Let me know what you think in the comments. 👍 Like, 🔔 subscribe, and click the bell so you never miss an icon. https://www.youtube.com/@TheFashionMemoir ✨ Remember: in fashion as in life, be fearless and fabulous — this is The Fashion Memoir.