Flappers to Fringe!
Decades of Style and Story
at The Occidental Hotel
June 2025
At Buffalo’s historic Occidental Hotel, six silent travelers have checked in with a steamer trunk and a wardrobe that depicts her as a quintessential woman of her time.
Join collector and performer Leslie Stratmoen, model and consultant Oakley Boycott, and Occidental Hotel proprietor Jackie Stewart, as they introduce a brand new exhibit -‘Women’s History Gallery of 20th Century Fashion’, opening on Saturday 21st June and discover the inspiration and story behind the gallery.
The Occidental Hotel, recently named one of America’s top historic hotels by “True West” magazine, is already a magnet for music lovers and history buffs. The new exhibit, installed in the dining room, features selected pieces from collector Leslie Stratmoen’s lifelong trove of more than 3,000 garments and fashion accessories, depicting six decades from the 1920s to 1980s.
Each decade, from the Charleston-fueled 1920s to the bell-bottom bravado of the 1970s, is presented as a life-size diorama of a female mannequin with her steamer trunk having arrived at the hotel, ready to unpack and dress for an event.
Each diorama is packed with many items typical of the era; showing how hemlines, fabrics, silhouettes and even shoe soles shifted in lockstep with wars, significant events, Hollywood starlets, and women’s expanding horizons.
It is part fashion archive, part living history lesson and designed to appeal to all ages – complete with a scavenger hunt booklet for younger visitors.
You are invited to the
OPENING GALA CELEBRATION
on Sat June 21st at 7:00 pm
– featuring live music from across the decades, refreshments, tour of the gallery, and the opportunity to meet collector and performer Leslie Stratmoen and Oakley Boycott, model and consultant.
Vintage dress is encouraged!
Admission is free.
Tours will be offered daily, by appointment, for $5.
For more information, or to make a reservation, call 307 684 0451.
Women’s History Gallery of 20th Century Fashion will remain at The Occidental Hotel indefinitely, and be updated seasonally.
The gallery is made possible in part by support by the Johnson County Tourism Association and Wyoming Humanities.
FOR MORE INFORMATION click below:
Flappers to Fringe
