Woman's Dress, 1900–05
date: label: Date made
content: 1900-1905
name: label: maker
content: unknown
notes: label: Description
content: There is no information as to who wore this dress.
label: Description
content: Cotton dresses such as this one were often advertised at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century as “wash dresses,” as they were easily laundered. While this dress could have been ready-made, most likely it was made at home. Although it is relatively simple in construction, the maker took care to add decorative details such as the bias appliqués and the self-covered buttons, neither of which served any structural need but simply made the dress more stylish. The dress is shown with a cotton apron that was typical for the period and the kind of apron that a woman might have worn for doing light household tasks.
label: Description
content: This one-piece dress is constructed of a black and white plaid cotton. The bodice has a high stand collar trimmed with a band of embroidered white cotton that closes with three pearl buttons. The center front opening in the bodice has twelve pearl buttons on the right side and worked buttonholes on the left side. Tucks in the bodice at center front run from the neckline to the waistline, and tucks starting at the shoulders release part way down into the bodice front. The bodice back has shirring at the waist to control the fullness with a bias strip, trimmed with four self-covered buttons, applied vertically at the center back. A cummerbund effect is created at the waist with a wide bias band that is attached to the skirt but loose from the bodice at the upper edge. The lightly boned waistband closes with two pearl buttons. The long, narrow sleeves have the fullness controlled at the wrists by tucks. A self-bias band is applied to the outer portion of the sleeves, which come to a point at the lower edge and are trimmed with two self-covered buttons. The wrist openings of the sleeves are edged with embroidered white cotton. The skirt section has a center front placket opening with eight hooks-and-eyes for closure. Tucks extend from the waist, releasing at the lower hip area. Two bias bands are applied at the lower skirt with a fold over hem. The dress is unlined, and the seam edges are raw on the inside.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Costume
label: See more items in
content: Clothing & Accessories
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1986.0202.11
label: accession number
content: 1986.0202
label: catalog number
content: 1986.0202.11
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Dress, 1-Piece
label: Object Type
content: Main Dress
label: Object Type
content: Woman
label: Object Type
content: Dress
label: Object Type
content: Entire Body
label: Other Terms
content: Dress, 1-Piece; Entire Body; Main Dress; Female