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Dress

Clothing MakerMade by Unknown
Dateabout 1825
MediumHand-stitched silk and cotton, with linen tape
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (length x width including sleeves): 47 1/4 x 22 1/2in. (120 x 57.2cm)
ClassificationsCostume
Credit LineConnecticut Museum of Culture and History collection
DescriptionPale pink dress lining; the bodice fabric is lighter weight and a slightly different color pink from that of the skirt. There is no embellishment on this garment. The neckline is very wide, and the sleeves are short and puffed. The skirt, which is gored, is flat across the front and around the sides. It is gathered at the center back for about four inches. The bodice is also gathered into the waistline at the center back. It is smooth in front, and fitted with vertical darts. The sleeves were originally a few inches longer, but a tuck has been taken across their width, making them more spherical. The bodice is lined with plain-woven cotton. A narrow cord has been incorporated into the edge finish of the neckline to stabilize it. A four-inch tuck has been taken in the skirt near the hem. This would make the skirt a bit stiffer and help hold out the skirt of the overdress at the bottom, as was the fashion. The center back opening is 15 inches long and closes with a hook and eye at the waist and at the neckline. The maker of this underdress didn't fit the fabric quite right at the top of the left skirt gore, leaving a small gap at the top of the skirt where it meets the waistline.

This garment was made to be worn as a lining to a sheer, probably embroidered, cotton muslin dress.
Object number1986.224.0
On View
Not on view
Front of dress with evening bodice 2.

Gift of Mrs. Seth P. Holcombe and Mrs. Gilbert A. Wick…
Mary Jane Buel
about 1890-1895, altered from earlier dress
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Charlotte Lee
1880-1885
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Mrs. Williams
about 1876
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Lovinia White
about 1833
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Editha Laura Jacobs
1896
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Julia E. Hickox
June 1860
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Adelaide Rathbone
about 1892-1894
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Mary Hall
1862
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Mrs. Elsie Roberts
about 1845
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Nancy Diantha Terry
about 1875
Gift of Phyllis Kihn, 1980.38.2a-c, Connecticut Historical Society, Public Domain
Marie L. Brown
1870