Conference Speakers & Personalities: Biographies

Elizabeth Stewart Clark

Elizabeth Stewart Clark fell in love with the past at an early age, and spent most of her teens stomping around the backwoods and hills of Oregon clad in Gunnysax dresses, every skirt she owned as petticoats, and "granny" boots. She took a grand total of one year off playing dress-up, assuming that leaving for university entailed becoming a grown-up, but then, quite happily, discovered living history and realized she could play dress-up forever, with like-minded people who didn't think it odd to recreate past eras in excruciating detail. Discovering the living history hobby clarified her focus on the mid-19th century, and she quickly incorporated a skill for design, research, sewing, and teaching in the study of women’s and children’s clothing and lives.  “Experiential Archaeology” is a passion and vocation… and she delights in passing her discoveries along.

Her university training in history (anthropology/archaeology) and English is put to use in unforeseen ways: researching the lives of mid-19th century people, and sharing that information with others as often as possible. She remains convinced that "arm-chair historians" have great worth, and that anyone can learn to do effective research, and apply what they learn to living history impressions.

With the encouragement of her husband, David, Liz first branched out from sewing for family and friends only, to sewing for client families; then, to being published in The Citizen's Companion, the Watchdog, and Civil War Historian magazine, teaching The Sewing Academy workshops at historic sites and museums across the country, publishing children's historic clothing sewing patterns (her pattern line remains the only complete wardrobe set for infants, and the widest size range for girls), and eventually, all the way to publishing The Dressmaker's Guide and www.thesewingacademy.com, a comprehensive on-line resource for mid-19th century living history enthusiasts. (If you've had occasion to call Liz, the deep, cozy voice that often answers is David... bribe-able IT guy, sewing test dummy, and provider of hot tea when Liz buries herself in work.)

Elizabeth Stewart Clark The Business is just one facet of life. Liz and David have four children (The Minions: Beth, Colin, Kitty Fern, and Avie), and have been homeschooling since Beth hit toddlerhood. Life stays busy with school, gardening, pet chickens, gymnastics, trumpet, bagpipe, drum, and voice lessons, Scouting, and church activities. The Minions have been an active part of the business from birth, both for generating new ideas, and as test dummies, which they tolerate fairly well. They've even been used as artist models, dressing in mid-century clothing for scenes of western life for artist Heide Presse.

As a proponent of full-family involvement in living history, Liz is eager to help families dress their teens and tweens accurately. Well-dressed young people, engaged in historically-consistent activities and impressions, adds a dimension to living history that cannot be realized any other way!

Liz is particularly excited to share her research on the patterns of western settlement; her family on both sides were frontier settlers from the early days of America, helping to open Michigan, Kansas, Idaho, and Oregon to permanent, developed society. She was raised in a gold rush town, and grew up with a fondness for the people and stories of this exciting time in American history.

She currently lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, and has an admitted weakness for Very Terrible Puns.

Ken Gough


Joseph Reed

Joseph was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio and like many other reenactors had an interest in history from an early age.

As a child artist at the age of five he had an innate sense period form and would draw elevations and cross sections of old fashioned houses, complete with furnishings, decor and figures in period dress.

Joseph began collecting antiques at around the age of eight when he began visiting his neighborhood antique store. As his knowledge about antiques grew so did his collection. Today he owns an extensive ensemble of furnishings dating from the late 18th century to the time of the civil war with a particular interest in early lighting.

He received his first scholarship from the Sophia Thurman fund for his essay on historic preservation. He has also been published in several national newspapers for his articles on historic preservation.

Joseph along with his mother Brenda have been civilian civil war reenactors for 13 years and have been volunteers at Hale Farm & Village 19th century museum as first person interpreters in Bath, Ohio.

Currently Joseph lives in Fort Lauderdale, FL and is a writer and appraiser for an auction house.

Sue Pfeiffer

Sue Pfeiffer is from Fort Wayne, IN. She is currently working as an Acquisitions librarian with the Allen County Public Library. She holds a BS degree is Social Work/Mental Health Therapy ad has worked as a family therapist and juvenile probation officer.