Cabinet Card: 1870s Amelia van Strandres

Backmark: Houston  307 King Street S.C.  [handwritten: “Amelia Vans——-“]

Date: c. 1870s

Subject: Portrait of a woman

Location:  Houston, S.C. [Note: There is a Houston in North Carolina, about 8 miles from the South Carolina border.  I wonder if the boundary has changed since the 1870s?]

Dress:  Silk, probably a solid-colored taffeta.  There is a decorative square inset at the front neck of the bodice.  I am not sure, but I think it is probably just piping basted onto the bodice to give the illusion of being a separate piece.  The mid-height standing collar is a darker color from the bodice.  Perhaps velvet?

She wears a heavily pleated white collar inside the dress collar, and a bow tacked or pinned at the neck.  A black lace fichu or necktie is pinned over everything.

Jewelry: She wears hooked earrings, rather large and probably metal.  There is a chain looped around her neck.  I’m not sure if it is a necklace or a fob.

Hair: This style is really magnificent and undoubtedly required extra hair.  The rolls on top are probably fake (real human hair, but purchased in the pre-rolled form), as is the mass of hair just visible in a coil behind the bow.  I suspect that the long curls are real.

I don’t know much about this period, I’m afraid.  If you can make any corrections, please do.

CDV: Young Woman in Coat with Buttons, c. 1864-66

CDV: Young Woman in Coat with Buttons, c. 1864-66

CDV: Young Woman in Coat with Buttons, backmark

Backmark: 2-cent Proprietary stamp, blue.  ” R.A. Lord   164 Chatham Street (158 Old Number) New York” (more of those images here and here)

Date: c. 1864-1866

Subject: Seated Young Woman

Location: New York, NY

This young woman wears a paletot-style coat, probably of solid-colored wool.  The coat has dropped armscyes, loose sleeves (in the style generally known as coat sleeves, i.e. two piece, shaped sleeves).  The body of the coat is loose all over and, when standing, would provide a smooth line from her shoulders to the hem of her full skirt.  This obscuring of the waistline was the most common silhouette for outerwear throughout the Victorian era.

The coat reaches about hip-level, and closes up center front with three sets of buttons.  The buttons probably fasten with a cord loop. The coat has a narrow, rectangular collar and what appears to be a brooch pinned at the throat.

The coat is decorated with fabric tabs and buttons at the shoulder and cuff, giving it just a hint of the military style popular with women during the war years.

Her jewelry is a pair of hoop earrings and a ring on her finger.  She is holding something in her hand, but I cannot make out what it is.  A tiny miser’s purse, perhaps?

Hair:  Her hair is typical of that worn by young women towards the end of the war.  It is oiled (note the comb marks), center parted, and the front sections rolled away from the face.  The roll begins right at her part, rather than down near her temples, which is a feature of late-war style.   Her front rolled hair is combed back and down to meet her back hair, which is coiled into a low-lying bun or knot.

CDV: Large Woman in Silk Dress, c. 1860-62

CDV: Large Woman in Silk Dress, c. 1860-62

CDV: Large Woman in Silk Dress, backmark

Backmark: “P. Rosenaker, Photographer, No. 51 Third Avenue, N.Y.

Date: c. 1860-62

Subject: Woman Standing

Location: New York, NY

Dress: One piece, attached bodice and skirt with “pagoda” style sleeves. Silk, plain weave. Opens up center front with concealed hooks and eyes. Bodice is dart-fitted; darts are very high and from the slight puckers at bust level, it appears that they let out (i.e. are not sewn to the tip of the dart) The bodice is poorly fitted, note the horizontal wrinkles caused by being too long and too narrow for her corseted torso.

Sleeves are trimmed with ribbon or ruching along the cuff and up to the armscye. Decorative buttons up front placket.

The skirt is attached to the bodice with knife pleats (possibly gathers, it is not clear). The skirt ends about 4-6″ from the floor in front and is bound at the hem with wool braid. Note how narrow the skirt is in relation to the cage crinoline supporting it.

Her collar is about 3″ wide, which indicates an earlier date (1850s) but she may simply have been out of fashion. Her hair is in a style typical of the early 1860s. She also wears undersleeves and a brooch at center front/neck and earrings.

Hair: Center parted, combed down behind her ears. Bound rather low on the nape of her neck in a coil.

CDV: Young Woman with Rolled Hair, c. 1862-64

CDV: Young Woman with Rolled Hair, c. 1862-64

CDV: Young Woman with Rolled Hair, backmark

Backmark: “D.K. Jewell Artist, Augusta, Me.”

Date: c. 1862-64

Subject: Portrait of a Young Woman

Location: Augusta, Maine

Dress: Fabric is striped and barred (dark vertical stripe, thin light “bars”, or widowpane) may be wool, cotton, silk, or a mix.

The piping at the neckline is visible. Most, if not all, round (jewel) necklines were piped in this period.

She wears a short standing white collar and a brooch at center front/neck. Decorative buttons down center front are just barely visible.

Hair: The three-quarter pose allows us to see a wonderful hairstyle. Center parted and oiled (note the comb lines just below her part); the front hair is combed away from the face over a wide “rat,” making the width extend from just above her temples t o the nape of her neck.

The front hair continues in a thick roll (no doubt augmented by a rat or false hair) across her neck, with the ends integrated into the back coil or tucked beneath is.

Her back hair is combed into a low-lying coil. Note the prominent levels(coils sticking out, with the last coil being the farthest out); this is typical of back coils from the 1840s through the middle of the 1860s. The back hair was typically held in place with a comb, usually ornamental as well as functional. Unfortunately, her comb is not visible. She may also be using hairpins to help hold everything in place.

CDV: Woman in Fan-front Dress, c. 1860

CDV: Woman in Fan-front Dress, c. 1860

Backmark: None

Date: c. 1860

Subject: Woman

Location: Unknown

Dress: One-piece dressed composed of bodice with attached skirt; fabric is probably wool, plain weave and solid color; fan-front bodice (“Y-bodice”) with pleats at shoulder; “bishop” or gathered sleeve into a cuff, pleats at armscye; knife-pleated skirt.

This woman is unusual for a few reasons. The fan-front bodice went out of style before CDVs were invented (1858), and she does not appear to be wearing a cage crinoline. There are a few explanations possible: 1) The CDV is very old (c. 1858)- supported by her style of dress. 2) She wears outdated styles, is perhaps marginalized by location, age, status 3) She is a Quaker or a member of a similar religious group- supported by her plain clothing and simple hairstyle. I don’t know enough about Quakers to be sure, can anyone help with this? Her flat, narrow collar, which was stylish in the early to mid 1860s, supports #3.

Fan front bodices were usually gathered or gauged at the waist; some were tucked, though tucks were more typical of earlier styles of the fan-front (1820s-40s). The pleats at the shoulder was a feature dating back decades.

She does not appear to be wearing a crinoline. Although it is impossible to be sure, especially without seeing the hem, the bulge at her hips looks more like the abrupt fullness of several petticoats and a pad than the smooth curve of a cage.

The dark velvet ribbon tied around her neck may be a watch fob. I guess this by how it is pulled taut and to the left. Watch pockets were usually small, horizontal pockets sewn into the waist of the skirt.

Hair: Her hair is center parted and combed behind her ears. There is none of the side fullness typical of the period. Her hair is probably bound up in a simple bun at the back.

Cabinet Card: Woman, 1860s

Cabinet Card: Woman, 1860s

Cabinet Card: Woman, 1860s, Backmark

Backmark: “S. Piper, 864 Elm St., Manchester, N.H.”

Date: Original image c. 1860

Subject: Woman

Location: Manchester, N.H.

Note: The style of dress in this photo predates the invention of the Cabinet Card, so I believe that this is a reprint of an older photograph.

Dress: This woman wears a one-piece dress, attached skirt and bodice, of silk.  The fabric appears to be solid-coloured.  Her bodice is darted fitted, opens up center front with concealed hooks and eyes, and decorated with a row of ornamental buttons

Her sleeves, while not completely out of style in the late 1850s and early 1860s, were certainly unusual for the time.  They are probably made in two parts- the top section sewn onto a tight lower section.  I am not aware of a specific name for this cut of sleeve, either period or modern.  Gigot or leg’o’mutton always seemed to me to most accurately describe the one-piece sleeves that are puffed at the top and narrow at the cuff (after all, a leg of lamb is in one piece!).  At first glance this woman’s sleeve resembles the gigot, but I think the shape is different enough that it deserves another name.

Her full skirt is worn over a wide hoop or cage crinoline.  The skirt is knife-pleated into the waist, with the pleats facing towards center front.  Her skirt is trimmed in several horizontal bands.  I can’t tell exactly what the trimming is, but a good possibility is that it is rows of self-fabric ruched up the center to from two puffs, and outlined top and bottom with velvet ribbon.

She wears a watch fob suspended from her belt- the watch is tucked into a small, vertical watch-pocket.  The majority of watch-pockets that I have seen on original garments are horizontal and on the left side of the dress (PL), but vertical pockets do show up occasionally.

Her dress is finished with narrow, flat white collar, pinned at the throat with a brooch.

Hair:  Instead of trying to tame naturally curly hair into the smooth hairstyles popular during the mid-victorian period, many curly-headed women preferred to wear them in controlled ringlets.  We would call them “banana curls.”  This woman conforms to the style of the period by center-parting her hair, oiling it, and setting it into uniform ringlets.

CDV: Girl with Hairnet, c. 1862-64

CDV: Girl with Hairnet, c. 1862-64

CDV: Girl with Hairnet, backmark

Backmark: “E.G. Gordon, Photographer, Williams’ Block, Cor. Madison & Elm Sts., Skowhegan, ME. The Negative from which this Picture was taken is preserved, and duplicates can be furnished at any time.”

Date: c. 1862-64

Subject: Profile of a Girl

Location: Skowhegan, Maine

Dress: This girl’s dress has small, decorative buttons on the center-front opening. She wears a short white standing collar pined or basted to the neckline of her bodice, and a brooch at the center.

Hair: Her hair is center-parted and combed straight back and down from the face, behind her ears, and into a mass of braids pinned up at the nape of her neck. A fine, plain hairnet helps keep it tidy.

Girls wore their hair short (in what we would now call a bob) until early adolescence, when they began to grow it out and pin it up in the same fashion as women. The large amount of hair this girl has indicates that she may be using false braids to supplement her still-growing locks.

CDV: Young Italian Woman

CDV: Young Italian Woman, c. 1866-68

CDV: Young Italian Woman, backmark

Backmark: “Studio Fotografico Goriziano F. Troester Cotrada S. Giovani No. 14”

Date: c. 1866-68

Subject: Young Woman

Location: Italy

Dress: Unfortunately, years of fading and a wash of watercolor paint have obscured most of the details of this image.  Her dress is a one-piece composed of bodice and attached skirt.  The entire dress is tinted green with watercolors. The bodice is gathered, with a center-front opening and buttons.  The bodice is trimmed with U-shaped ruching.  The skirt reaches to within inches of the floor, and is trimmed about a foot from the hem with two narrow stripes.

She wears a white apron, which is an unusual accessory in photographs of this era.  Possibly it was a local convention.  When Americans are photoraphed in aprons, the aprons are almost always the decorative silk kind.

She wears a relatively small cage crinoline, a size typical for the latter half of the 1860s.

Hair:  Her hair looks like it is brushed straight back and bound up, but it is difficult to tell because of the poor quality of the photograph.

CDV: Woman from Nice

CDV: Woman from Nice, c. 1866

CDV: Woman from Nice, Backmark

Backmark: “Photographie D’Art G Echtler Rue Adelaide , 3. Avenue de la Gare Atelier au rez de Chaussee NICE Tous les cliches sont conserves”

Date: c. 1866

Subject: Woman

Location: Nice, France

Dress: This woman wears a one-piece dress composed of a bodice and attached skirt.  The fabric could be wool or silk or a mixture of the two.  The bodice is dart-fitted and closes at center front with hooks and eyes.  Decorative buttons spaced approximately 3/4″ apart line the placket.

Her sleeves are the modified pagoda style we have seen so often in this blog.  They are trimmed with narrow ribbon or braid to form a mock cuff.

The skirt is pleated, hangs about 6″ from the floor in front, and dips slightly towards the sides and back.  The hem is covered with a wool tape to prevent fraying.

She wears a thick necktie with the band exposed and relatively high on her neck.  This neck height is typical of mid-to-late 1860s fashion.  Her white collar and undersleeves match each other, with a tiny row of dots around the edges and cuff.  These dots could be contrasting ribbon woven through eyelets, but there many other possibilities for how it was done.

Her only visible jewelry is a pair of drop earrings.

Hair: Her hair is center parted and arranged in a peculiar horizontal curl or wave over her ears.  She may have matching combs and ringlets down the back, but the photograph is too unclear to see exactly what is there.

CDV: End of the ’50s

CDV: End of the '50s

Backmark: None

Date: c. 1858

Subject: Woman

Location: Unknown

Dress: The dress is made from heavy watered silk, with three rows of gathered ruffles at the hem.  The ruffles may be of the same fabric or a coordinating fabric; from their more wrinkled texture, my guess is that they are a taffeta.  The ruffles are finished with a large (about 3/4″ wide) scallop, which was a popular edging at the time.

The woman wears a wide (about 3″) flat collar with some texture, indicating that it is lace or embroidered, and a slightly ruffled edge.  Note how she has placed the collar on top of her wrap.  She also wears full undersleeves, though details are not visible.  The dark spot below where her collar meets in front may be a brooch, but because it is much lower than most brooches, I think it is probably a button.  It may also be the hanging portion of a brooch.

Outerwear: She wears a mantle, which is in a style that was popular throughout the 1850s and into the 1860s.  (In fact, it survived in some form for most of the Victorian era).  This style mantle is characterized by opening in front, being slightly fitted over the shoulders, shorter in length over the arms, long tabs in the front, and a full back designed to flow over the full skirt.  The back of the mantle could range from just below waist-length to almost the knees.

This mantle also has a ruffled edges extending from the very elongated shoulder-line to her waist, where she holds it in place.  The fabric of the mantle is difficult to discern.  Some texture on her left arm appears to be lace (likely Chantilly lace, which was wildly popular).  Although most chantilly lace was worn as a simple triangular shawl, there are plenty of extant examples of cut-and-sewn garments from the lace to make it possible that this is one.

Hair: Her hair center-parted and arranged in several loose, curl-like rolls towards her face.  Her hair is at its widest between her temples and chin, which was the fashionable shape throughout the 1850s.  She is wearing some sort of headdress, with chenille or tassels of some other material hanging stylishly at the side.