Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-09-07
What We Wore on Our Heads In
War Times

War Times
A. IooS over the heads of a com
many OF ladies during these hot August
6avs and see them dressed up in hat:
sbat would hold nearly a half bushel- o.
grain. I wonder if these young PeoP .1
hax-e any idea as 90 the kinds OF head
-sar that was worn in war times. nearly
n wears ago by their ancestors.
II AZ had been the style 10 go bare
headed then as so many do. at TINS uile
II would have been an immense eohNen
fe1ce and a great saving as TO hat max
,,g IN time. labor and trouble. but tne
tdea OF going anywhere bareheadeo'
81, sure never entered any womans heaO
in the sixties. and she would nave es
feemed il a serious hardship not 10 nav
had a genuine bonnet. because al srONA
-, v~or.en wore some sort or n bonnet
There were quite a NUMBER % -,
TaVborn bonnets resurrec,ec IN thoss
49, of r,akeshifts and close economy
ana I really believe the prettiest oohie'
I owned during the Confederate uIrSs
Vas a Ieehorn. dyed lustrous oiacIA
.~sr,r,es on the outside with dark greer
err bands, and ouiIlings and lined on
IRE inside with rose pink silk ana gun
lt,~s II was manufactured from al
old Ieehorn bonnet and did eXceilehI SCI
ice until the war was over. SOME
kee ideas crept in along with oiOeAau .
goods. and I recollect well when my 49,,
s-ors rood sister sent me neat oiacs
s+raw Rat CaIong towards the close
,-tr,r,ad in black silk with fall OF rea
hrsrl- lace on the brim about two inches
wide to-s
n was so becoming that my neighoors
,wara ron of examining il. TO contIlVe
hats IKE Il. and I got over my tlhllui.s
.b,,,s wearing hats instead Of bonnets
a, church. because people were fono OF
,,roffnp- 81. Paul, even in war days, as 10
,ronen's head coverings Girls and Wo-
men learned to braid palmetto mats YER
slxilfuIly also. and many were trimmed
with pIumes made from the same mate
rial. -..
made a striking and lovely contrast 1 ne
srran bag was OF prime importance, In
tbosa fatefui DAYS Of stress and strain
7 owned a dark maroon colored cashmere
dress before the war, and II was OF
elegant quality. almost like broadcloth-
vrtsh / could remember how many
things were made and trimmed out OF IT,
as IL was altered and cut over, down 70
The last inch OF the goods, but can ten
~ the comfort took IN shirt waist
I'VE didn't cali them shfrr-waists, remem-
her. We were too modest TO talk OF snlrts
in company, of cOurse) made OF the ma
room cashmere. trimmed in narrow black
velvet ribbon, with tiny buttons ooulo
wear Il with anything from my NOfil
blaety sir skirt. to the newest one, OF
dark homespun woven In the loom at
home. and I always felt genteeI In IL
we made summer gloves out of scraps
of lace and de laine from the scrap
bag. and for winter wear, could knit
black wooden thread into the most ex-
cellent and neat-htting gauntletteo
-rlavex They would be nice at any
time for comfort and good looks IN snowy
ureather. IL was the. underwear Ques-
ton which gave infinite worry and per-
plexity. a.. -
made my husband. a set Of shirts
from bed vaIeucss-long and short cur
aafns that draped- the old-fasnioneo
shigh-posted bedsteads that were com
mon before the war. --,--g = sscl5..
; / made two night gowns for myself
from the great sheet that belonged IN
the carriage house to envelop our. pan
elled carriage and I can't tell how
many things also that were manufac-
tured therefrom by my thrifty needl.
using homespun thread to sew the gar
roeuts for my children and family. Only
the other day came across two pairs
of clicked stockings. knitted Of the
finest ''spun truck" 1 could get No.
% yarn. and they are nice to look at
even yet The patterns are nice and
any girl might be pleased to wear black
sfux stockings nowadays OF these pat
terms could be faithfully copied or re-
produced
Glanced to get hold Of bunch of
wastage that the first Wheeler and
Wilson sewing machines used, and were
brought in as packing somewhere.
I wish I had kept count Of the gar
ments / made and the darns and patch
es that were coutrived by carefully ex-
tracing the spool thread lengths from
the tangled bunch OF wasted threads.
I have known ladies' to finish up the
calico dresses. doing all the hemming
and button holes with the Rawlings Of the
precious calico itself
When a gala wedding took place. ev-
eFybody Clipped In and lCEned what they
had, that was pretty and rare, in wells.
lace or jewelry. II was a generous era
in our history, because we were oppressed
all the time with the feeling that we
did not know what the morrow would
bring forth. especially after Sherman's
burners begun their march to the sea.
Much was burned. much was looted.
much was wasted. and the exigencies OF
the situation were so great that II you
had something TO wear, you felt that you
were almost obliged TO wear II. The won
der is that so much survived the devasta-
tons Of war; and I feel sure we have
allowed ourselves TO overlook the wonder
fuI story OF what we wore and ate during
the war. until the time has passed away
forever IL would have been a charm
ing history TO be wonderfully priced a
hundred years afterward-
A CRYING Need in Georoia