Mrs "Kathy" Mitchell
Kathleen Mitchell (née Stacey) was born in Sheffield in 1912. She moved to Hull in 1950 to teach at St John's Church of England School. Kathy and her husband, John Mitchell, organised barn dances between two local schools. In a time of rock and roll, it wasn't easy to get the boys and girls to do country dances together. But Kathy's infectious energy prevailed, and the events were a success.
The Mitchells were well known within the Folk music and dance world. Kathy led a local branch of the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), which flourished under her leadership. In her role, Kathy organised the Whitby EFDSS festival and taught country dancing and sword dancing. She also prepared the Country Dance Demonstration Team.
Kathy was a gentle woman and treasured teacher. In recognition, the Society awarded her the Gold Badge in 1978 – the highest award they could bestow.
Collecting costume
Kathy Mitchell's collection was a hobby arising from her love of historical costume. She amassed so many items they practically took over her house!
Kathy collected items wherever she found them: second-hand shops, auctions and donations. Pat Raine, a local costume expert, recalls meeting Mrs Mitchell after an introduction by a mutual friend. Kathy had been pleased to show her collection to a fellow costume enthusiast. Especially someone who used the fashion and historical context of many items.
Due to the method of collection, few items have known provenance. But given that Kathy lived in Hull and Sheffield, it's likely that many of the costumes have a local connection to the city and the wider Yorkshire area.
Donation to the museum
We acquired The Mitchell Collection of Costume in 1991. Kathy had discussed donating a few historically important items before her death. But sadly she died in 1990 before she was able to do so.
The executor of Kathy's estate was kind enough to donate the entire collection to us. The donation included an extensive collection of slides that Kathy had photographed in her garden. In some images, live models wear the costume – a practice not advocated with historical dress today.
