Unrecorded dressmaker, Afternoon dress, United States, ca. 1905–10. Satin brocade, lace, metal, tulle, braid, silk bows. Neusteter Textile Collection at the Denver Art Museum: Gift of May Wilfley in memory of her parents, A. R. Wilfley and Addie M. Wilfley, 1974.160.
May Wilfley and her whereabouts were often reported in the Society Section of The Rocky Mountain News by journalist Helen Marie Black. Readers could follow the dinners, balls, bridge parties, luncheons and plays she attended, along with details about what she wore. In 1916, she attended a ball wearing “a Lucille [sic] model [dress] of white tulle and silver lace. The skirt was extremely full and hooped, and the color note was a girdle of blue ribbon and a lavender corsage.”
Dress by Lucile, 1916. From Fashion A History from the 18th to the 20th Century (Taschen, 2022).
Hand-painted gelatin silver print of woman wearing a Lucile dress, the fall 1916 model “Happiness”. Hixon-Connelly Studios, Kansas City, Missouri. ASU FIDM Museum: Gift of Christina Johnson, 2009.901.2.
It is not uncommon for society women to be reported on in newspapers this way. My interest was instead piqued when I came across headlines such as “Society's Fairest Learn Secrets of Auto Mechanics” and “Miss Wilfley Entertains Friends with Her Own Original Electric Dinner.” For a young woman in the 1910s, this was especially unusual.
In 1920, Helen Black also reported on Wilfley’s various hobbies in the article “Miss May Wilfley Prefers Work to Social Affairs and Has Become Proficient in Long List of Practical Hobbies.” Black compared Wilfley to Prometheus from Greek mythology, a Titan and the god of fire known for his cleverness and foresight and who famously stole fire from the gods and gifted it to humanity.
“Miss May Wilfley Prefers Work to Social Affairs and Has Become Proficient in Long List of Practical Hobbies,” The Rocky Mountain News (Daily), January 11, 1920.
Could Wilfley be a feminine version of Prometheus? Wilfley’s skills included sculpture, painting, cooking, lace work, lighting and electricity, and auto repair. And through her skills, she supported the arts and humanities. She was a patron for local theaters and worked on the electrical engineering and lighting for performance theaters in Denver. "Sometimes I like doing girls’ things such as sewing and cooking and at other times I want only mechanical and mannish employment."
And she had the appropriate attire for each occasion. While she wore current fashions like her Afternoon dress to social events, she donned overalls and trousers for her auto repairs. Trousers “not only keep her clothes clean but are so much easier to work in than skirts.
As if this wasn’t impressive enough, 12 years later in 1932, she found a burglar in her home. She confronted him and calmly asked, “Why don’t you go away?” This frightened the man, and as he fled the scene, Wilfley got in her car, chased after him, and aided police in catching him!
Forty-three years after Wilfley’s death, the Denver Art Museum’s stewardship of her dress along with porcelains and rugs, in addition to the stories in the Rocky Mountain News, allow us to learn about her and her unique life. A patron for the arts and humanity, May Wilfley is the definition of a Renaissance woman, adept at any number of wide-ranging vocations. She may not have brought fire to humanity, but her gifts uplifted many institutions and organizations in Denver.
