THE WEDDING PARTY
Ann S. Brown c 2025
“The Wedding Party” is the name of this old photograph. It was taken on a lovely fall afternoon in 1915. Family and friends of Cora Blevins and Tom Weaver had gathered at Cora’s house to celebrate their marriage. Cora and Tom had gone to the Justice of the Peace to get married. They were expected back home by suppertime. A feast was prepared for them. Music and merriment was planned. The fiddler tuned up his fiddle and played a tune or two. The photographer set up his box camera on the tripod, glass negatives and black hood at the ready. And they all waited.
Soon the hour was growing late and the sun was beginning to slip behind the hill. Cora and Tom had not returned and so it was decided that the wedding guests should go ahead and eat. The photographer posed everyone and took several good pictures before the light was gone. After the meal was over the fiddler picked up his fiddle. First he played “Gathering Flowers From the Hillside” for the ladies. When “Soldier’s Joy” rang out, toes began tapping and soon folks were dancing in the yard. It was dusk when the party broke up. Everyone went back to their own homes with many questions and much worry on their minds. Where was Cora and Tom? Were they alright?
That morning at daybreak Cora and Tom rode their horses out of the hollow in the early morning mist. They were on their way to the Justice of the Peace to be married. The Justice lived fifteen miles away. Tom said they should be back home by suppertime, but things don’t always go as planned. They were almost there – just three miles to go – when Cora’s horse picked up a small rock in her shoe. Tom tried as gently as he could to remove the stone, but it had already bruised the mare’s foot. Then she had to be led slowly and rested often. It was afternoon by the time they reached their destination. The Justice of the Peace was not at home. He had been called away on business. Cora and Tom didn’t know what to do. They had one lame horse and it was too late to start back home anyway. The wife of the Justice kindly invited them to stay overnight at their house. In the morning when her husband returned, he would take care of everything. They gladly accepted. Supper that night was a simple affair as the missus was not expecting company. Cora and Tom’s gaze met across the table, knowing they were missing their wedding supper back home. Later, Tom went upstairs to bed. He hardly slept a wink. Their loved ones back home would be worried about them. Not only had they missed their wedding supper, they had missed the music and merriment with their family and friends. He was not sorry they had missed their serenade. Tom’s friends would have carried him around the house riding on a fence rail. Then they would have carried Cora around the house riding in a galvanized wash tub. It was supposed to have been great fun and represent some of the items they would be working with in their daily lives after they were married.
Cora’s bedroom was downstairs beside the missus. She slept lightly and saw visions of the beautiful wedding cake her friends had made for her. Each of them baked one large round of cookie dough. The layers were stacked using a special apple butter made by Cora’s mom between the layers. The cake was eleven layers high. The top was adorned with a large white bow and a bouquet of red fall roses. Today we call these flowers chrysanthemums. Cora smiled. The cake was beautiful. It would be a surprise for Tom. Apple butter stack cake was his favorite.
Morning finally came. The Justice returned home around noon. He married Tom and Cora while his wife stood as a witness. The missus packed some sandwiches for the couple. The Justice loaned Cora a gentle older mare who would take her safely home. At last they were on their way. This time the trip was uneventful. Time passed quickly and soon Cora and Tom were riding their horses back up into the hollow in the late evening mist. From a distance they could see that the wedding party was gone. The fiddler was gone and the photographer was gone. No one came to greet them except Cora’s faithful dog. He ran to meet them and raised such a racket that Cora’s parents came out on the porch to see what was going on. They were so glad to see Cora and Tom safely home. That night their wedding supper was a simple affair. It was a stew made of left over chunks of mutton and roasted vegetables with thick slices of home made bread. There was apple cider to drink. They ate by candlelight and to them it was a feast. The wedding cake, in all of its glory, was waiting for the bride and groom to cut it. They said it was delicious.
Tom and Cora’s wedding journey got off to a rocky start and was delayed. But when the knot was tied it lasted a lifetime. They spent many happy years together and raised a big family. Their children and grandchildren loved to hear them tell about riding out of the holler on horseback in the early morning mist and going to the Justice of the Peace to get married.
My Mom, Maggie was there at the wedding party. In this picture she is the sixth young lady from the left, seated on the ground with her friends. They were waiting for Cora and Tom to return. She told me this story many times. It was one of her favorite memories.