By Laura Bailey
Nineteenth century romanticism with elements of sci-fi fell upon the Federal Hill Green for the “Victorian Summer Fantasy” picnic on Saturday. Hosted by Silk City Steampunk, the event featured ragtime music, refreshments, speakers from local museums and the steampunk tradition of tea dueling.
“In tea dueling, you face off against an opponent and there’s an art to it,” said Dave Carlson, “You both dunk the cookies in the tea for a certain amount of time, then you lift them up. Whose ever cookie crumbles first, looses.”
Carlson, an organizer and event planner with Silk City Steampunk, has been a part of the group since its founding in 2014. The Manchester resident helped the community grow by envisioning what he calls 12 months of steampunk.
“I wanted to do an event every month,” said Carlson. “We did a Victorian ice-skating fantasy, strolls, picnics, and a teahouse crawl; like a pub crawl, but with tea.”
Silk City Steampunk events began to attract the attention of local steampunk enthusiasts, and the group now has around 3,000 members.
Fashion plays an essential role in the steampunk community. Many enthusiasts, like Silk City Steampunk member Linda LeCorsaire, make their own outfits.
“Personally, I do a lot of sewing,” said LeCorsaire. I try to keep it simple and Victorian-looking. Everybody has their own interpretation of steampunk fashion”
Showcasing his tea-themed steampunk fashion was Captain Jim Pekoe. A resident of Bristol, Pekoe was dressed to the nines, right down to his teapot earring.
“As you can see, I love anything to do with tea,” said Pekoe. “I live on the other side of town, and we caught a beautiful day to be here.”
The steampunk event featured speakers from local museums, including Kristen Berggren, who spoke about the history of Lake Compounce.
“I worked there as a ride operator in college,” said Berggren, “and I always loved the carousel.”
Now a Program Coordinator at the New England Carousel Museum, Berggren spoke about how much the carousel, as well as the rest of the theme park, had changed throughout the years.
Carlson said he hopes to bring the “Victorian Summer Fantasy” back to Bristol next year.
“We hope that more people will join us, and that this will be even bigger next year.”
All TBE readers, supporters and donors
The Bristol Edition will be limiting the number of stories non-members and free readers may access each week. This decision is based on our financial projections and, most certainly, to remind people that TBE is serious about providing accurate, timely and thorough reporting for Bristol. To do this we have devised a financial support structure that makes unlimited access extremely affordable, beginning with a $6 monthly donation.
- Non-members will be able to access eight (8) articles per week.
- Free readers and people who have subscribed by email will be able to access eight (8) articles per week.
- Donors and financial supporters will have unlimited access as long as they log in.
Note: Donors may have to contact TBE if they find they are being limited, since we will need to set up a membership account for you. Email editor@bristoledition.org for instructions. Sorry for any inconvenience. People with financial difficulties may write editor@bristoledition.org to be considered for free access.
