 |
 Susan Jarrett, M.Ed
|
|
|
|
Susan Jarrett, M.Ed
|
| There is
much documentation of
what men wore during this period (see
image at right) but not a great deal of research on women's
clothing. I suspect this is because early American frontier women and
children (of European decent) did not prominently serve as trappers,
land surveyors, or explorers. Instead, they made history quietly by
building
communal ties in what was then the wild and unruly wilderness. What I
do know about the clothing on this region I have pieced together from a
variety of different historical texts- specifically those relating to
the historical and cultural heritage of Southern Appalachia. The early 19th century was a great time of influx and expansion across America. In 1803, the United States acquired the Louisiana territory from France, doubling the size of the country overnight. Individuals and families began pushing westward from the already settled regions of Virginia, the Carolinas, and Pennsylvania. By 1800, over 150,000 European settlers had emigrated into the Appalachian region alone. In the 1820s, gold was discovered in Georgia- bringing a rush of spectators into the mountains. From 1830-1838 (against the ruling of the American Supreme Court), Andrew Jackson forcibly removed all remaining Native Americans from their homelands east of the Mississippi to areas known as the New Indian Territories (what is now present day Oklahoma and Kansas). As a result, what was previously deemed as "unsafe Indian territory" was now open to white settlement. With the opportunity for large plots of open land, many frontier families sold their smaller parcels in Kentucky and Tennessee and moved farther west into Missouri. From 1820-1840, immigration to America was rapidly increasing and the concept of manifest destiny was sweeping the nation. Thus, the massive emigration west pushed white settlement even farther into the the American wilderness. (See maps below) |
 Trapper's Bride
ALFRED JACOB MILLER, 1840s Hunter Museum of American Art |
  Settled areas from 1800-1820 (left) vs. Settled areas from 1820-1835 (right) (Images courtesy National Atlas) |
|
American
clothing in during this period was still very much regional. In
Pennsylvania and Tennessee, the Quakers brought about fashionable
period
styles coupled with simplicity of adornment. In New Orleans, French
fashions were still very much en
vogue. In New York, clothing amongst the immigrant population
was both a sign of cultural heritage
and religion. Immigrants held onto much of
their
traditional dress. It provided a sense of belonging and a sense of
community. But clothing also denoted social status. And, only in
America
could the poor have the chance to achieve a better life. For these
people, clothing was an outward expression of the American dream.
 Woman Holding a Hymn Book by Ammi Phillips, circa 1826 (left) The Immigrants by C. F. Blauvelt, circa 1850 (right) (images courtesy The Hunter Museum of American Art) |
|
But in
the untamed American wilderness, things were a bit different. While
European settlers took with them a combination of their traditional
garb and
their new American styles, these types of garments were not always
conducive to the untamed terrain and their new living conditions. Thus,
these new settlers had to adapt their clothing to the demands of the
region. Many incorporated
traditional Native American materials into their wardrobe- using things
like
buckskin, fur, and other types of wilderness materials to make
European-
style shoes, breeches, and outerwear.
Women
made their own coarsely woven fabrics- something we now refer to as
homespun and linsey-woolsey. Once near an established market town,
families could visit the general store and purchase finer
cloth. But it was pricey and in a world where money was scarce,
purchasing (or in most cases- trading
for) fabric would have only been for very special occasions. Across the Prairie A. Bierstadt, 1864 Hunter Museum of American Art |
|
| Sadly,
there is little remaining evidence of clothing worn by the settlers of
this period.
Because cloth is a perishable good, clothing that was no longer
mendable, patchable, or usable was recycled into quilts, bonnets,
and
dress linings. Most documentation of surviving fibers and prints from
this period indeed come from old quilts. What we know of how the
clothing looked comes from period sketches and frontier diaries. It is known that the garments of these early settlers typically followed the silhouette of the period. However, practicality and functionality mattered more than style. A frontier family's day was filled with hard labor and long hours. Winters were bitterly cold and summers were unbearably hot. For women, skirt lengths were shorter, necklines were higher, and sleeves were long and narrow. Both women and children wore large sunbonnets or woven hats to protect their skin from the sun. Aprons and smocks were always worn to protect clothing from the laborious chores of frontier life. Clothing was primarily wool or linen- and later mixed with cotton. Dyes were natural and came from nut shells, berries, and the bark of trees. Clothing of the American frontier was completely hand woven and hand stitched. And, except for the occasional specialty item, all garments (including shoes) were made by the frontier families themselves. |
|
  (Right) A recently completed
interpretation of a rural American dress for the 1850s-1860s.
Although the the time period is later than discussed, one can still get the feel of what early wilderness dress might have looked like. (Left) Wooden button details which the ingenious seamstress would have carved from her environment |
|
| Selected Bibliography: Appalachia: A History of Mountains and People. PBS Series, 2009. Bush, F.C. Dorie: Woman of the Mountains. University of Tennessee Press, 1992. Dunn, Durwood. Cades Cove: The Life and Death of a Southern Appalachian Community. University of Tennessee Press. 1988. Dykeman, Wilma. Tennessee Women. Wakestone Books, 1993. McCaulley, Margaret. A Cades Cove Childhood. The History Press, 2008. |
|
