Ann Lowe, Black Designer Of Jackie Kennedy's Wedding Dress, Finally Getting Long Overdue Recognition

BOSTON (CBS) - It was Newport, September 1953. The centerpiece of the wedding of Jacqueline Bouvier and Senator John F. Kennedy was a dress fit for a princess, a classic Ann Lowe. An ivory silk-taffeta gown with a portrait neckline and a full bouffant skirt, it was a dress that would take its place as one of the most iconic wedding dresses in history.

But unlike other designers who became synonymous with the Jackie Kennedy look, Lowe never got the credit she deserved. But recently, her name is being brought to light by writers and historians, eager to share her story, including Elizabeth Way, author of "Black Designers in American Fashion."

"Ann Lowe was really part of Jacqueline Bouvier's life before she got married, before she started making her own fashion choices," Way explained. In her research Way discovered that Lowe was well known in fashion circles in New York for her exquisite work. She made dresses for Jackie's mother and other socialites.

She was chosen to design the intricate gown for Jackie and her bridesmaids, but the wedding day was almost a disaster. "A water pipe burst in her studio and ruined the dress 10 days before the wedding. Lowe and her assistants had to recreate them," Way said.

According to Way, Lowe had to resew the dresses at her own expense and that frantic week was punctuated by a painful moment at Hammersmith Farm. "She tried to come in the front door and was stopped because she was African American. She was told to use the service entrance and she told them, if you want the dresses, this is the door I am coming in," Way said.

"She was a real haute couturier," said Judith Thurman, author, and fashion writer at The New Yorker. Thurman said she was astounded to hear about Ann Lowe only two years ago. "I covered fashion for the New Yorker for 20 years. I first heard of Ann Lowe in 2020," she said.

When she was told Lowe was the haute couturier who made Jackie Kennedy's dress, and that she was a Black woman, she was shocked she had not heard of her before. "It was humbling and embarrassing," Thurman said.

Thurman wrote about Lowe's nickname, Society's Best Kept Secret. "She was the best kept secret because she was a bargain. She didn't dare ask for what her work was actually worth. It is the work of Black fashion curators and historians that have brought her back to the public eye," Thurman said.

"I do think that the fact that she was black, the fact that she wasn't connected to a design house contributed to keeping her name under wraps," said Way.

Jackie's wedding dress is currently stored at the JFK library, but it is too delicate to be on display. Way and her team used resources at the library to research details about the dress so that a replica can be sewn for an exhibit of Lowe's work at Winterthur Museum in Delaware.