RTL's birth

[Donna McCreary]

When reading the chatty family letters that are at the ALPL, I have discovered many spur of the moment weddings. In the 19th century, weddings were not the huge events they are today. Most women married wearing their best dress - not a special wedding gown. Few women wore a veil. It was rare to have a a wedding party with more than one attendant. Most weddings were in the front parlor, not a church. And many people just located a minister and said their vows.
Mary's sister Ann was married very quickly. According to one letter, Ann barely gave her sisters enough time to change into party clothing. According to John Todd Sturat, Mary's sister Emilie married without much warning - although Emilie did have a reception after the wedding. The family members in Springfield were told about the wedding after the fact, not before it took place.
In my own family, my parents just took off one day, found a justice of the peace, and were married. No gossip followed them around - it was just how things were often done. There were no thoughts of anyone being forced into marriage, or of it being a shot gun marriage. Children were not born for another six years.
We think of the Todd family and the Edwards family wanting a huge proper affair for a wedding because that is what is done today. Those types of weddings were rare for them - not because of money or social standing, but just because they were not socially required.