Ida was the wife of Charles Langdon, whose sister, Olivia or "Livy" married Samuel Langhorne Clemens, or Mark Twain. The Langdons lived in a large mansion at a central corner in downtown Elmira, New York; they were enlightened and well-read; they were local leaders in the abolitionist movement and founded what is now Elmira College. When the mansion was sold in the 1930s, Charlie's, Ida's and the children's clothing went from the attic to Cornell University along with bits from other family members. Sadly, the memory is all that remains of the mansion. Similarly, of Livy's beautiful clothes, none are known to remain except for the two garments I researched - reluctantly because I am supposed to be researching printed dress fabrics.

Nonetheless, the trip was wonderful, taking me through a piece of New York state history that left me convinced more needs to be done to bring this fascinating time and place into higher relief - but not by me.

The book traces a path of family history through regions of dress construction, body size, local history, leading literary and philosophical personalities, cutting-edge health care, dress reform, and high style clothing and home decor interests. The Chemung Co. lavender dress clearly relates to Cornell's "pansy" dress while both are distinct from other garments in Ida's wardrobe - now we know.