Mrs. A. Fletcher was the person to go to if you wanted reasonably comfortable undergarments for women or girls in the late 19th century in New York City. This advertisement dates from 1885.The Equipoise Waist was a modified corset built into a blouse. It was invented by Emeline W. Philbrook of Boston, who patented it in 1876.
The Union Suits were long underwear made specially for women - which was indeed revolutionary. The Union Suits were made in merino and cashmere, which must have been nice in the winter!
Mrs. Fletcher also sold Emancipation Waists, Shoulder Braces, Abdominal Supporters, Obstetric Bandages, Shoulder Stocking Supporters and Sanitary Napkins. The book For Girls (1887) by Mrs. E.R. Shepherd has a whole chapter about how girls should dress; the illustrations were all taken from Mrs. Fletcher's catalogue, Shepherd says.
Advertisement from the back pages of Thompson's Guide to Coney Island (1885), over at Internet Archive.
Next time: some odds and ends, including Fred Bell: The Story So Far (the story of my detective work, that is). I can't wait to tell you what's in store!
8 comments:
Was watching a history series Victorian Farm and what woman used as sanitary pads was interesting ( they don't generally cover that stuff in history books!).
T'was a small rectangular cotton bag with 1 open end stuffed with moss.
Jayne - No, they don't tend to mention it, do they! And yet - it is history, too. When the time machine is invented and we get to travel to the 1880s, um, I will be packing a bag with some modern amenities! :)
Unable to sleep last night I sat up and watched several infomercials. Bored, I stoked up the computer and stopped to read one of my favorite writers, Lidian.
Life today is so dull compared to the infomercials of old that you excavate.
Always enjoy my time here!
-fM
history Mrs A. Fletcher can be inspiration for the modern woman, to be independent, to create and transform ideas into a variety of works that extraordinary
fM - Thank you! :) Likewise, I'm sure...And there is more fun in store next week, I promise.
devianty - Absolutely. There were many more innovative women around back then than I would have imagined a year or two ago (and that's after many years of being interested in women's history!)
Hi I just stopped by to drop on your Entrecard and wanted to let you know that you have been added to Blog Angel's All Above the Crease Drop List . I created the list because I was sick of wasting time trying to find people's Ecards. You and everyone on the list has their Entrecards in an easy to find location. Stop by and check it out.
Only $2.25! You can't get much of anything in undergarments for that price today. www.satisfiedsole.com
blogangel - Thanks! :)
Pam - A bargain now, probably not so much then, though...
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