Here she comes! Little Miss Althea Rouzan dressed as Cupid as she walks down the aisle of Corpus Christi Church at the Daliet-Beckham wedding held July 1934. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lee Rouzan of Ponce de Leon Street.
Never having heard of “Cupid,” being a member of a wedding party before, I did a little research. I soon discovered from an article in The Brooklyn Daily News that children dressed as cupids were a feature of New Orleans weddings as far back as 1869. This custom appears to have been a part of New Orleans Creole weddings as recently as the 1930’s.
Since Cupid was the “God of Love” in Roman mythology, it’s only fitting that a wedding would be the perfect setting. Ancient Romans often depicted Cupid as a winged child or baby who carried a bow and quiver. Baby Althea continued this tradition. As the wedding party moved gracefully into the beautifully decorated church, Little Miss Rouzan appeared in an accordion pleated dress and white sandals. A spray of white flowers adorned her head as she carried a bow and arrow trimmed in white flowers.
The first to enter was little Miss Berenice Delery, dressed in coral eveningattire set off with a blue sash,coral sandals, and carrying a bouquet of pink carnations. She was followed by the 1st bridesmaid, Miss Edwina Patterson. Then appeared the sister of the bride, Ethel Dailet, and Mrs. Wanda Lacabe, matron of honor. Behind Cupid came the lovely bride, Miss Fredericka Dailet, dressed in white satin enhanced by a lace veil held in place by sprays of orange blossoms. As the charming bride moved gracefully on the arm of her brother, Mr. Oliver Daliet, murmurs of admiration could be heard from the crowd. Mrs. Beulah Daliet is the mother of the beautiful and popular bride.
Mr. Arthur Beckham, the groom, was attended by Messrs. Gilbert Beckham, his brother and Arthur Monnett who were all attired in double-breasted white linen suits with matching accessories. They sported white roses in their lapels. Mr. Beckham was a graduate of McDonogh 35 High School. A gala reception was held on Annette Street where a record crowd of admiring friends gathered.
[If any of our readers have further knowledge of “cupid weddings,” please contact us on this blog.]
Source: The Louisiana Weekly, 14 July 1934, page 2; The Louisiana Weekly, 25 August 1934, page 1.
L.V.C.
Hello! I could have sworn I’ve been to this web site before but following browsing via some of the post I realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m certainly happy I discovered it and I’ll be book-marking and checking back often! 209778
Yes, we’re new and we’re doing something new by researching and sharing virtually unknown information about the creole families of south Louisiana and the gulf south. This is our passion and we’re happy to share it with you. Also, if you have some information, virtually unknown, you would like to share please forward it to us. We see collaboration as a vital part of our mission to get this information to as many people as possible. Thank you for your comment.
Thank you for the “Real Cupid“ article which chronicled the Daliet-Beckham wedding. I am a product of that union and was elated to read about my parents’ wedding. All of your articles were extremely interesting and brought back fond memories of people and places from long ago.
It is interesting to note that two people that were in the wedding party show up in other articles. Mrs Wanda Lacabe in the “Gay Divorcee” article and Miss Berenice Delery , a student, in the St Mary’s Academy article.
Thanks again and keep up the good work.
Ken Beckham
I was looking up some information on family and I came upon this article. Oliver Daliet was my great grandfather. Also, I had no idea that cupids were used at weddings. A great artile!!
Christine Guillion-Williams
What an interesting story! That’s my family!!
Beckham
I am not sure where you are getting your information,
but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more.
Thanks for fantastic information I was looking for
this info for my mission.