The tradition of a June Bride
June is a very busy month at The Carriage House with multiple events happening every weekend. Most of these events are weddings or pre-wedding events. About mid-June, I started thinking about the popularity of the month of June for weddings. I’ve always heard the term “June Bride”.
Audrey and Quentin are one of our June 2021 couples. They initially scheduled their wedding for 2020 but decided to postpone their wedding 10 months due to Covid. This delay allowed them to celebrate with all of their friends and family. Photos by Emily Elizabeth Portraits.
What is the history behind “June bride”?
The Farmer’s Almanac had my answer! Two older traditions point back toward the popularity of June.
- The month of June is named after the goddess Juno who was the protector of all women. Women were quite lucky to be married during this month and would have favor in their marriages under this tradition.
- The Celtic calendar also had a great influence on the popularity of June. Young couples would start pairing off around May Day (May 1st) with the intention of marrying on the next Cross-Quarter Day which is August 1st. Couples who found themselves in a hurry to wed, would set the date for mid-June.
Timing the wedding and family around the harvest
Since The Carriage House estate is a working farm, it’s only fitting to mention that weddings used to be timed for family planning to not impact the harvest. If a couple were to wed in June, a child would come 9 months later. A spring baby would allow adequate time for a mother to recover to help with the fall harvest.
Aren’t these traditions so funny? I loved learning about the history of the June bride. I know this month is very popular across the country, but it’s a very special time for many people here in East Tennessee.
Local newspaper honors June brides
The Citizen Tribune has quite a history honoring June brides. Historically the newspaper held annual competitions where you could submit to be selected as “The June Bride”. This honor would show your entire wedding in a newspaper insert. This wedding style insert was always fun to look through. Local vendors would be featured and the weddings were always on trend with current fashions. The JUNE_BRIDE_2019 edition showed former June Brides from 1967-2015. I loved seeing their wedding picture and an updated family picture side by side.
Today, the Citizen Tribune still honors June brides but has evolved to feature many June brides. I would love it if some of our Carriage House brides submit to be included in this year’s feature. Don’t you love seeing people you know in featured articles?!
June often brings good weather
Many of our couples select June for their nuptials because the weather is quite pleasant this month. The days are longer and sunny, but we aren’t into the super hot and muggy months of July and August. The flowers are in bloom, the fields are green, and we can open up The Carriage House to expand the space to include the outdoors.
We are celebrating the 1 year anniversary of the Reeds who wed at The Carriage House in June 2020. Photos by Ashley Spangler Photography. I loved their powder blue getaway car!
Summer vacations and destinations weddings
With people taking vacations during the summer months, friends and family from out of town find it easier to travel for June weddings. Their kids are out of school, and they can make the wedding part of a larger vacation. We’ve had couples from out of state plan weddings at The Carriage House. East Tennessee is a great place for a destination wedding and our estate is quite picturesque in June.
Thanks for going on this little journey learning about the history of June brides. I’ve got to get back to helping our next June bride. I love working with all of our brides regardless of the month and am so lucky to help them plan their big day! If you’re thinking about an estate wedding, I’d love to discuss options with you! The Carriage House is so beautiful. Please reach out; I’d love to give you a tour.
All my best,
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