Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump's Wedding Shoes
date: label: date made
content: 1885
name: label: wearer
content: Bump, Lavinia Warren
label: referenced
content: Barnum, P. T.
notes: label: Description
content: Pair of shoes worn by entertainer Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump, likely at her wedding to Count Primo Magri in 1995. The shoes are made of silk with embroidered flowers. Upper is leather covered with white silk, faded to ivory, embroidered with pink roses and green stems and leaves. Sole is also made of leather. Each shoe is adorned with a bow and embroidered tongue.
label: Description
content: Based on information provided by the donor, it was long believed that these were worn by Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump during her wedding to General Tom Thumb (Charles Stratton) in New York City on February 10, 1863. Recent research suggests that they more likely date to her 1885 wedding to Count Primo Magri, based on their stye and construction.
label: Description
content: Mercy Lavinia Warren Bump was born with pituitary dwarfism, limiting her physical growth but not her ability or ambition. She sang and danced her way to global celebrity, known for her fashionable style. She performed with her husband, Charles Stratton (Tom Thumb) from 1863 until his death in 1883, and with Count Primo Magri after their marriage in 1885.
topic: label: associated subject
content: Weddings
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
label: See more items in
content: Popular Entertainment
label: Exhibition
content: Entertainment Nation
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Constance A. and Gerard F. Gilbert
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1987.0177.01
label: accession number
content: 1987.0177
label: catalog number
content: 1987.0177.01
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Shoes, Pair of
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: embroidered (overall production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: leather (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: silk (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 3 1/4 in x 1 1/2 in x 6 in; 8.255 cm x 3.81 cm x 15.24 cm
label: Measurements
content: part: left shoe: 3 in x 1 1/2 in x 5 3/4 in; 7.62 cm x 3.81 cm x 14.605 cm