Susan, Last year we did a recreation of the first wedding that took place in this house in 1913.  I did some reading then about wedding cakes and found that it could have been almost anything from a sort of fruitcake to a sponge cake.   I also checked the local paper for descriptions of weddings from that period and that was how we decided to do a lighter cake rather than an fruitcake.

What part of the country are you in?  Do let me know if I can be of any help to you.  Good luck - we had a great time.