Thanks to a fortunate alignment of events, my first summer project is to recreate the dress in this photo of
Susan B. Anthony ca. 1856.
Photo found on the Five College Archives and Manuscript Collections http://asteria.fivecolleges.edu/findaids/sophiasmith/mnsss129.html
Later this summer, I will be working as an intern at a local historical museum. In this particular program, each intern works with their on-site supervisor to develop a project that will benefit or enhance the museum while aligning with the intern’s interests. When I first called the museum to inquire about the program, the woman I talked with was very excited to hear of my interest in historical clothing and reenactment. The way she was talking, you’d think it was unusual to find a 20-something who would willingly spend hours sewing and wearing four layers (give or take) of heavy, constricting clothing – go figure! A few weeks later, my interview covered a variety of topics from Downton Abbey to “The Wonders of Homeschooling,” and ended with both of us barely managing to remain professional in the face of our bubbling excitement about my project: recreating one of Susan B. Anthony’s dresses.
This could possibly be the perfect project for me: I have an excuse to pour over photos of gorgeous dresses, read for hours on end about some of my favorite subjects, shop for fabric, sew, and parade around in a mid-nineteenth century dress with all the fixin’s. In short, my version of Nerd Heaven. However, when I finally finished scooting through the house doing little happy-dances, I realized that I’ve only ever made historical clothing from store-bought patterns, using a modern sewing machine for EVERYTHING, and settling for bargain bin, all-synthetic fabrics. The more research I did, the longer my “skills to acquire” checklist became. I also realized that I would need a lot of information from reliable sources, and it can be difficult to find those on the internet.
So, first chance I got, I sent a general plea for help to three of my most knowledgeable acquaintances: two who manage the costume shop at a local college where I dance, and one local costumer and seamstress with whom I had an apprentice-like position several years ago (and whom I tend to simply call “The Master”). The next day I had enthusiastic replies from all of them saying they’d be happy to help, and a few days after that I went home with an entire tote bag full of magical books with everything I needed to get started, plus some really neat bonus information.
(For instance: did you know that in the 16th century, some women wore corsets made entirely of iron?)
“For difficult or deformed figures” (Left photo from The Wallace Collection, Right photo from the Victoria & Albert Museum, full image from ‘Corsets and Crinolines’ by Norah Waugh)
My plan is to make a “Practice Dress” with help and input from more experienced sewers so I can learn all (or most) of the techniques I’ll need when I make the “Real Dress” later this summer. So far, I’ve had two meetings with The Master so she could help me complete the first few steps in recreating the aforementioned dress.
Credit to the University of Rochester Department of Rare Books and Special Collections http://www.lib.rochester.edu/index.cfm?PAGE=4281
The photo is captioned with the year 1856, and the style of the bodice looks like pictures I found of:
“German Day Dresses” from the mid 1850s and early 1860s
as well as “Fan Front” dresses from the ’40s through 50’s.
It also nearly matches drawings of dresses from the same time frame in the book ‘Costume in Detail 1730-1930’ by Nancy Bradfield and photos of an 1840s Mourning Dresses made from silk (found on this site of 19th Century Mourning Clothing).
I’m not quite sure how the white center of the bodice is attached; it could be an insert attached by hooks, some variation of a chemisette or dickey, or it could be sewn under the tucks on each side with closures down the front (which I think is less likely, since something so light would be easily soiled and most collars or cuffs of the time were detachable for easy washing).
On to the muslin mock-up!
~LaughingNymph~ 
Leave a comment