This is a small example of what sometimes is called "ephemera," a printed artifact designed for a specific purpose produced with no expectation that it would survive for 136 years --- as this has.
Its distribution was reported in The Chariton Democrat-Leader of May 23, 1883, as follows: "Cards are out for the marriage ceremony of Mr. Frank R. Crocker and Miss Minnie E. Arnold, which will be solemnized at the Presbyterian Church on next Thursday evening at eight o'clock. After the ceremony, the bride and groom, with a select company of their friends, will repair to the residence of the bride's parents, Mr. and Mrs. S.S. Arnold."
I'm not familiar enough with 19th century etiquette to be able to say if this was just an announcement of the impending marriage --- or if it signified that recipients were invited to witness the ceremony. The former, I think.
It came to hand at the museum the other day, among many items donated by Miss Mary White many years ago, because the printed card and its accompanying envelope --- along with a blank gold-banded card of the same size and weight as the announcement --- had gotten separated and we were able to reunite them. Everything here is very small --- and the cards are very heavy.
We don't have an image of the bride, but here's a photograph of Mr. Crocker, probably taken at about the time of the marriage, also from the Lucas County Historical Society collection.
The Presbyterian Church, where the wedding occurred, stood on the site of the current First Presbyterian Church, but was a classic New-Englandish style brick building with steeple. The reception would have been held at the Arnold home, located at the intersection of South Grand Street and Woodlawn Avenue. The big house on the site now was built by the Arnolds after fire destroyed the house the 1883 reception was held in.
The Crockers enjoyed 24 years of prosperity and hopefully joy in Chariton and built for themselves and their children the big house that's been added to over the years to form what now is Fielding Funeral Home.
The whole thing came crashing down on Halloween, 1907, after Mr. Crocker killed himself overnight on Oct. 30-31 and it became evident that he also had misappropriated the funds of First National Bank, the "Mallory bank" of which he was cashier, and it was closed immediately by federal regulators. This was a financial disaster for Lucas County (deposits were not insured at the time) and a personal disaster for Mrs. Crocker and her children.
The Crocker survivors fled to Minneapolis --- where several members of Frank's family lived --- after dispatching his remains there first for burial in Lakewood Cemetery.
Lucas County and the Crockers did not part as friends, but we do have this small reminder --- and a few others --- of happier times.
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