Exploring the Life of Edith Fetherston through her Clothing

This research is an examination of the life of Edith Fetherston through studying her clothing and comparing her clothes to fashion history. The authors of Survey of Historic Costume, Tortora and Eubank, state that: 'Dress serves as a means of communication,' and that 'historic dress provides readers with some context for the period in which costumes were worn'. Most importantly, they state that clothing is 'a glimpse of attitudes and values as they were expressed by individuals of [a] period.' (4). Studying clothing history is a way to understand the attitudes of the times; it has a relationship with the attitudes of the society in which it is or was worn. Studying garments can identify personalities, as well as professions, and economic status. My research is based on the wardrobe of Edith Fetherston between the early twenties and late sixties. This thesis begins by examining Edith herself, then it examines each decade and its major characteristics, and finally my research examines at least two garments from each of the five decades.

Characterization of HgCl2 Tridentate Amine Complexes by X-ray Crystallography, NMR and ESI-MS

Two new HgCl2 complexes of tridentate nitrogen ligands were characterized by X-ray crystallography, proton NMR spectroscopy and ESI-MS. The five-coordinate complex [Hg(BMPA)Cl-2] (1) (BMPA = bis(2-pyridylmethyl)amine) crystallized from acetonitrile/m-xylene by slow evaporation in the monoclinic space group P2(1)/n with a = 8.3896(8) , b = 12.8020(13) , c = 13.3526(13) , alpha = 90A degrees, beta A = 90.480(2)A degrees, gamma A = 90A degrees and z = 4. The square pyramidal structure (tau = 0.009) has approximate C (s) symmetry. Despite comparable Hg-N bond lengths in 1, inversion of the central nitrogen was rapid on the chemical shift time scale in dilute solution except at very low temperatures. The related complex [Hg(BEPA)Cl-2] (2) (BEPA = bis(2-{pyrid-2-yl}ethyl)amine) crystallized from acetonitrile/ethyl acetate/hexanes by slow diffusion in the orthorhombic space group Pnma with a = 13.424(3) , b = 14.854(3) , c = 8.118(2) , alpha = 90A degrees, beta A = 90A degrees, gamma A = 90A degrees and z = 4. The mixed geometry structure (tau = 0.56) also has crystallographic mirror symmetry as well as C (s) point group symmetry. In dilute acetonitrile solution, 1 was stable while 2 slowly converted to a more thermodynamically stable complex.