A Brief Fashion History of Mertens, Rhode Island

1764 - Henry Mertens inherents his family’s extreme wealth and moves from Wiltshire, England to what is now Mertens, Rhode Island and builds an estate

1765 - Because of his deep passion for the color gray and his even deeper passion for tight fitting garments, he decides to hire 15 seamstresses, and give them room, board, and salary in exchange for free gray, tight fitting garments for the town’s wealthiest

1766 - Mertens’ estate is dubbed House of the Seamstress

1773 - With no income and lots of expenses, Henry Mertens goes bankrupt and moves back to England to live with his Aunt Carol

1834 - The ever handsome socialite, Benjamin Brentwood starts to become something of a stylistic beacon, wearing bright, ornate, flowy garments

1836 - Brentwood gains a following, referred to in a historically conscious irony, “the Tens”

1837 - Over the course of a year, 1,459 people sit outside of Brentwood’s home to watch him get dressed

1845 - Spending more than he could afford, Brentwood’s debts grew irreversible. To avoid imprisonment, Brentwood moves to Canada to live in exile

1866 - Playwright, Oliver Walton, begins to gain some success and fame

1868 - Walton’s gray form fitting style, inspired by Mertens, begins to come back into style

1870 - Walton is tried and imprisoned on rumors of having feelings

1871 - Brentwood’s fashion is cemented as the pinnacle of style