A local wig makes good—literally. The East Hampton Historical Society announced that it possessed the only known eighteenth century wig in America. This might sound a bit, well, recondite, as news goes in the Hamptons. No celebrity gossip, no extravagant party, no mind-bending real estate price. But when you examine it, the story turns out to be a page turner.
The curators at Colonial Williamsburg determined that a wig, made of horsehair on a linen base, from the East Hampton Historical Society collection, dated to the 18th century. The importance of the wig was enhanced by recent information that other wigs at Williamsburg thought to be from the 1700’s were actually made later, in the 1800’s and early 1900’s. (Which raises the peculiar and possibly kinky question of who was wearing such wigs in the twentieth century.) For now the wig will remain at on loan at Williamsburg because they possess conservation and preservation facilities not available locally. A copy will be made for display in East Hampton.
History, besides being an analysis of the great events and prominent people of the past, is the cumulative sum of small things—of bibelots and foundation stones, spinning wheels and recorded deeds, family heirlooms and community anecdotes. And it is our local historical societies that preserve and record this history. Many of the 12,000 items in the East Hampton collection were donated by a local people, quite often walking in with a shopping bag. If you’d like to help the East Hampton Historical Society build the facilities to bring the wig home, send a contribution.