Almena “Mena” Riley O’Neill (right) and her friends Etta (left) and Northrup Lowry (center) gathered at the Battery in the spring of 1919 to take this photo, most likely shot by Almena’s fiancée, Aloysius “Al” Moultrie O’Neill. Mena and Al’s granddaughter, Patricia O’Neill DeTreville, says her family often took photos while they were dressed up at the Battery. At the time, it was de rigueur for women and girls to sport stylish bonnets, and Mena was said to have worn one every time she walked outside, even if she was only stepping out to grab the newspaper. In the same spirit, for the past 19 years, the community-minded Hat Ladies of Charleston have been donning their finest chapeaux and fascinators as they march through downtown in their annual Easter promenade.
