Suffer For Beauty - White River Valley Museum

a newsletter of the white river valley museum
July 2009
Featured History
What’s Happening?
Junior Historians
From the Back Room
Good News!
Page 1, 4
Women’s History
as Seen through
Undergarments
Page 2
Suffer for Beauty Exhibit,
Model Railroad Show
Page 3
Summer Camp’s Back!
Free Kids Programs
Page 9
Alaska Yukon Exposition
Collectable Stuff
Page 11
New Chicks,
Valuable Volunteers
Featured History
Suffer For Beauty
A Retrospective on Women’s
History as Evidenced By the
Evolution of Undergarments
by Tara McCauley, Curator of Education
Fifteen years ago, the Museum mounted a
temporary exhibit called Suffer for Beauty,
wherein women’s history was represented
through an examination of the evolution of
undergarments.The exhibit traced political
and social changes as represented through the
changing modes of women’s underwear.This year,
the Museum will again host this exhibit, on display
August 12 through November 8.The display will
feature the ideal look of an era and show what
undergarments and beauty aides are required
to accomplish that look. Historic photographs
of fashion trendsetters will be compared to
photographs of local women doing their best
to abide by these often-changing fashion trends.
What follows is a brief preview of the kinds of
garments and historic events that will be featured.
Ladies on horseback in corsets and long dresses, c. 1890. PO-00621
Suffer for Beauty DVD Available
Working with the Washington Women’s History
Consortium we have developed a power point program
paralleling this exhibit. It has been created for use by
other historical organizations, and key slides can be
altered so each user (if they wish) can insert images of
local historic women. It is a fun and entertaining way to
learn about women’s history.
To obtain a copy ($5 including shipping) contact
Janet Wells, jwells@auburnwa.gov or 253 804-5010.
What’s Happening?
Exhibit Programs & Classes
Suffer for Beauty
A Retrospective on Women’s History as Evidenced
By the Evolution of Undergarments
On Display August 12 – November 8
Sponsored by 4Culture, the Seattle Foundation, and
the Washington Women’s History Consortium
Visitors to this exhibit will learn about women’s history through a
review of underwear styles! After all, society puts expectations on us to
look in certain ways, and those ways change over time. Women have
been responding to these changing norms of beauty in the best way possible, altering their shape and look often using undergarments to do so.
The exhibit displays women’s undergarments and beauty aides by era:
bustles and corsets of 1880 to1900, less binding clothes of the progressive era 1900 to 1920, the restricting fashions as 1905, to 1910 to 1914
backlash, the freeing 1920s, the economical 1930s, wartime masculine
years of the 1940s, and finally the ‘new look’ from 1947-50s.
Annual
Model Railroad Show
September 12–13, 11 a.m.– 4 p.m.
Get on the right track to fun and
come celebrate the trains that shaped
our area. We’ll have so many G scale
Lionel to N scale models, we can’t
hold them all. Visit us at the Museum
and across the street at the
Senior Activity Center.
$3 for adults,
$2 for children and seniors.
Exhibit Programs
Free with regular Museum admission unless otherwise stated.
Film Screening
Fashion Show
August 29, 1–3 p.m.
Not for Ourselves Alone:The Story of
Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B.
Anthony
September 26, 2–3 p.m.
The Golden Oldies Guild Presents:
A Fabulous Vintage Fashion Show!
Ken Burns’s Emmy® Awardwinning documentary recounts
the trials, tribulations, and triumphs
of two pioneer women striving
to give birth to the women’s
movement.
Lecture and Slide Show
September 18, 6–8 p.m.
Variations on the Fig Leaf
Join guest curator Michelle
Marshman for a lecture and
slide show on the changing ideas
of beauty through women’s
undergarment fashions.
2
Highlighting a century of fashion
highs and lows, this will be an
entertaining and educational
look at the history of women’s
fashion. Live music and hilarious
commentary make this an event
not to be missed! Admission: $5
adults, $4 children/seniors, includes
museum admission.
Family Day
October 10, noon –4 p.m.
Dressing Up!
Don’t miss our hands-on
celebration of our current Suffer
for Beauty exhibit, with fun for the
whole family.
Junior Historians
Things To Do
Summer at the White River Valley Museum
Hooked on History
Wednesdays
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Free for everyone and no registration is needed!
T
he White River Valley Museum
is excited to present another
season of Hooked on History, a
free summer program occurring
Wednesdays from 10:30 – 11:30
a.m., before the Kids’ Summer
Stage concerts in the park. Come
join us as we explore a new
theme each week, discovering the
Museum’s collections with special
guests, stories, games, music and
crafts! Hooked on History is free for
everyone, and no registration is
needed!
Books Bring History Alive
Fridays
11:30 a.m. –12 p.m.
July 10, 17, 24, 31, August 7
Free for everyone and no registration is needed!
B
ooks Bring History Alive is a fun
summer program occurring
Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 12
p.m. catering to children aged 2
to 5. Each week a new book is
selected and read aloud in the
galleries, followed by a simple,
complimentary craft project.
Junior Curator’s Summer Camp
August 17 – 21
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Kids ages 8 –12
$60
I
f you love collecting stuff and
investigating history, then the
Junior Curator’s Summer Camp is
the place to be this summer! Each
day participants will explore the
Museum’s collections with handson artifact investigation, art projects
using recycled photographs,
research into mysterious objects,
conservation experiments, games
and more. Camp will conclude with
a kid-created exhibit and reception.
Don’t miss the fun!
Call 253-288-7439 to register.
July 8 — Phenomenal
Photographs
A pictorial adventure through the
Museum’s collections!
July 15 — Map it!
A geographic free-for-all that will
have you searching for fascinating
facts…
July 22 — Art Through the Ages
Discover artistic expressions from
past to present.
July 29 — Read all about it!
Join us for a literary exploration
through history!
August 5 —Traveling West
A fun-filled investigation of early
settlers to the White River Valley.
3
Featured History
Suffer For
Beauty
A Retrospective on
Women’s History
as E videnced B y
the E volution of
Undergarments
by Tara McCauley
Curator of Education
Continued from page1
History Reflected in Underwear?
We all know that undergarments are worn under clothes, often next
to the skin but have you ever considered that the amount of freedom
undergarments allow, their part in displaying erotic intentions, and the
degree to which morality imbues them all speak to the social roles
of their wearers? Practically speaking, they keep outer garments from
being soiled by perspiration, shape the body and provide support.
Undergarments can be used to preserve the wearer’s modesty, as well as
for erotic effect. Undergarments commonly worn by women throughout
history include bustles, corsets, girdles, bloomers, hose, garters, petticoats,
and brassieres. As popularity in one style of undergarment changed, so
often did the social and political role of women, or was it visa-versa?
Corsets and 18” Waists
Historically, metal, bone and wood were sewn into support garments
called corsets, with the intention of ‘staying’ or defining the shape of a
woman. Stays of the 18th century were laced from behind and drew the
shoulders back to form a high, round bosom and upright posture. Undue
tightening of the corset stays sometimes led to a woman needing to retire
to the fainting room or couch as they lessened her ability to breathe. As
small waists became fashionable in the 1820s, the corset was boned and
laced to form the hourglass figure. By the 1860s, a tiny waist came to be
seen as a symbol of beauty with women seeking the ideal 18 inches.
Rational thinking re-emerged by the 1880s with the dress reform
movement that campaigned against the pain and damage to internal
organs and bones caused by tight lacing. Following this thought, in the
early 1900s, Inez Gaches-Sarraute, a corsetiere with a degree in medicine,
Anna Held, dance hall siren, c1890.
Electric Corset
Electric corsets gained huge popularity in the early 1880s as the uses
for and benefits of electricity seemed boundless. As published in the
New York Times on Jan 12, 1882:
The uses of electricity are growing every day, especially the uses
made of it by ingenious advertisers. The electric hair-brush, which is
warranted to make hair grow on the head of a brass monkey if it
is used sufficiently often, has been before the public for some time,
and until lately was justly regarded as the easiest and most effectual
way of applying electricity to the skin. It is now, however, rivaled in the
estimation of the public by the electric corset, a new and wonderful
invention. The wood-cut showing the manner of using the electric corset represents that article as a sort of close fitting jacket worn by a
young lady…If steadily worn the electric corset will cause the wearer
to grow plump and to enjoy the very best of health.
introduced the “health corset”, a garment with a straight-fronted bust
made to help support the wearer’s muscles. The style was probably the
result of several like-minded corsetieres and medical professionals. It
was intended to create fewer health problems and to be less constricting than previous types of corsets. Even so, it was difficult to bend over
in a corset of that time, leading to a stiff, formal style of movement. The
less physical freedom a woman had, the less she was prone to leave
home, pursue athletics or work for pay.
Rational Dress Movement and Women’s Suffrage
In the late 19th century, the United States was home to a number of
high-minded, evangelical women active in the anti-slavery and temperance (anti-alcohol) movements who started what came to be known
as the Dress Reform or Rational Dress Movement. As they gained
experience in public speaking and political activism, some of these
women began to demand emancipation for themselves and their wardrobes. They wanted the vote, and sensible clothing as well! The movement had its greatest success in the reform of women’s undergarments,
with bloomers, union suits and the softer, more camisole-like emancipation bodice gaining great popularity. Dress reformers were also influential in persuading women to adopt simplified garments for athletic
activities such as bicycling or swimming. Concurrently, women were
becoming increasingly involved in the political realm. So, after years of
efforts in 1883 Washington women won the right to vote.
When women joined their votes with progressive thinking men,
local elections often focused on issues of social justice, closing many
taverns and brothels that had operated without much regulation. As
with all change, a backlash against this progress was felt. On February
3, 1887 the Washington Territory Supreme Court enacted a new law
that excluded women from serving on juries. One argument held that
women who served on juries would be exposed to “sordid facts of
life,” as in the conventional opinion of the time, women were too delicate and pure to know such facts. Finally, on November 14, 1888, the
Washington Territorial Supreme Court nullified the women’s vote,
arguing that Congress had never intended to enfranchise women in
the first place.
It was not until November 8, 1910 that Washington State’s male
electorate ratified the 6th Amendment to the State Constitution,
permanently granting women the right to vote. Even then,
Washington was the fifth state in the nation to enfranchise women.
above Mary Florence Reilly on her wedding
day to Mr. Michael O’Brien, 1892. PO-0153
below Vera Sells Morley, no date. PO-01305
Back to Underwear
By the early 20th century, the mass-produced undergarment industry
was booming, and competition forced producers to come up with all
sorts of innovative designs. Meanwhile, in response to the growing freedom in women’s lives, designers of women’s undergarments relaxed
www.wrvmuseum.org
• 253-288-7433
5
the corset. The invention of new, flexible but supportive materials allowed whalebone and steel bones to
be removed.
In a short-lived (1910-14) but oppressive backlash
to the Rational Dress Movement, “Hobble Skirts”
gained some popularity. Their narrow hem significantly
impeded the wearer’s stride, thus earning its name. An
above-the-knee hobble or a knee-long corset helped
to achieve this effect. Certainly an effective measure to
keep women from venturing to far from home!
During the second-decade, free moving, trouserlike “bloomers” gained popularity with the so-called
Gibson Girls who enjoyed pursuits such as cycling and
tennis. The Gibson Girl was the personification of the
feminine ideal as drawn by the pen and ink illustrator
Charles Dana Gibson. The Gibson Girl was tall and
slender, appeared active and outdoorsy, with an ample
bosom and hips, a youthful face and hair piled loosely
on her head. This new female athleticism helped push
the corset out of style. The other major factor in the
corset’s demise was the fact that metal was globally in
short supply during the First World War. Steel-laced
corsets were dropped in favor of the brassiere.
left, No I.D., c. 1900. PO-01505
1880s
1890s
1900 –1910
1911–1914
The Changing
Silhouette of
Fashion
Over time
women have
altered their
form often by
use of undergarments to
accommodate
the body shape
that was
considered
beautiful.
Does this
happen today?
Ordinary People, Extraordinary History
6
Freeing 1920s
The 1920’s culminated in the “boyish” silhouette of the
Flapper era, with little bust definition. The boyish figure
downplayed women’s natural curves through the use
of a bandeau brassiere. It was relatively easy for smallbusted women to conform to the flat-chested look of
the Flapper era, whereas bustier women had to work
a bit harder to achieve the look. This new kind of
young woman wore short skirts, bobbed her hair, listened to the new jazz music, and flaunted her disdain
for what was then considered acceptable behavior.
The Flappers were seen as brash for wearing excessive makeup, drinking, smoking, driving automobiles,
and otherwise flouting conventional social and sexual
norms. Women’s bloomers became much shorter
and stockings covered the legs instead. The shorter
bloomers became looser and less supportive as the
boyish flapper look came into fashion. By the end of
the decade, they came to be known as “step-ins”, very
much like modern panties but with wider legs.
right Dolphie Tamburello, 1924. PO-00340
1911-1920
1920s
1930s
1942 –1946
www.wrvmuseum.org
1947–1950s
• 253-288-7433
7
tember
e, Sep
atalogu
Sears C
1941
MATERNITY CORSET
Maternity corsets were marketed
and sold well into the 1950’s. A
1914 HW Gossard Co Maternity
Corset Advertisement states:
Better Health, Greater Comfort,
Improved Appearance – Three
reasons your maternity patients
should wear this corset!
While designed solely from the
standpoint of health, this corset also improves appearance
to the extent that the wearer
does not shrink from appearing
in public. This is an inestimable
advantage psychologically and
means that the usual social life
may be continued, preventing
depression and despondency.
left Isabelle Zafforini at Easter, 1944. PO-02143
right Grade School Teacher from Washington Elementary,
c. 1930’s. PO-02069
Home-sewn 1930s
For women in the 1930’s, skirts became longer and the waistline was
returned up to its natural position in an attempt to bring back the traditional but more relaxed “womanly” look. The desired silhouette of the
1930s included a round to pointed bust as shaped by a brassiere and a
natural shape of hip. Homemade clothing - even underwear - became the
norm, so the exaggerated affects one might expect from ‘foundation garments’ was minimized. Simple panties, slips and camisoles characterize the
undergarments of this era.
WW II Military Look
World War II had a major impact on clothing. Advertising for undergarments appealed to a woman’s sense of patriotism. Dress codes appeared
- for example, Lockheed informed their workers that bras must be worn
because of “good taste, anatomical support, and morale”. Women’s occupations shifted dramatically, with far more women employed outside the
home and in industry. In imitation of fighting men, and perhaps in reaction
to the number of women working out of the home, the practicality of
men’s wear, pantsuits, bloomers and exaggerated shoulders gained greatly
in popularity. A new ideal silhouette was the Sweater Girl, a busty and
Ordinary People, Extraordinary History
8
MAKE-UP
As much as fashion is continually
changing, so too are make-up
trends for women, with the latest and greatest always available.
A 1941 Angel Face Powder Ad
by Ponds stated:
left Carrie Kinkade, 1942. PO-02984
right Meridian School Faculty, 1949. PO-02281
wholesome girl next door whose tight fitting outer garments accentuated
her artificially enhanced curves, and whose padded shoulders silently portrayed her mannish ability to work outside the home and her patriotism.
Lands of Plenty and Peace
A reviving postwar economy fueled demands for consumer goods with
greater variety. Manufacturers met this with new fabrics, colors, patterns,
and styles. Padding and stretchability were among other innovations. A
postwar baby boom created a demand for maternity and nursing bras,
and television provided new promotional opportunities. Hollywood glamour became an increasingly powerful influence in fashion. Women left the
working world to make room for returning veterans. In 1947, Christian
Dior’s “New Look” signature shape was announced. It was characterized
by a below-mid-calf length full-skirt, a tiny waist, and a large and pointy
bust line. This represented an almost total return to turn-of-the-century
aesthetics. In repudiation of the post-war fabric restriction, Dior infamously used 20 yards of extravagant fabrics in his creations. Over time the
New Look became revolutionary and strongly popular, influencing fashion
and other designers for years to come.
New Angel Face by Ponds
Heavenly
New make-up goes on without water…and stays!
“I really never expected to
find a make-up as completely
satisfactory as Ponds New
Angel Face! It’s a wonderful
complexion flatterer – heavenly soft color that clings for
hours and hours!”
— Miss Theodora Roosevelt
To see this chronology come
to life through the display of
our extensive collection of
underclothes, garments and
photographs don’t miss
Suffer for Beauty,
August 12 – November 8, 2009.
9
From the Back Room
By Alison Tisue
Curator of Collections
Hilary Pittenger
Collections Assistant
When using objects to learn
about history, it is important
to ask a few questions:
Why was this object made?
Who used or bought the
object? How do the maker
and user’s perspectives vary
from my own? Though it
is tempting to interpret an
object’s story using our own
biases and opinions, we must
remember to try and look at
the object through its maker
and user’s eyes first.
below Hudson Bay Fur Company Exhibit
at the A-Y-P Exposition, 1909.
#PO-1600
10
A-Y-P Souvenirs: How Trinkets Tell Stories
The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909 was a major event in
the history of Washington State, helping to turn the image of the state
from a backwoods gold rush region into a booming industrial center
teaming with natural resources and access to the then-still-exotic locals
of Alaska, Hawaii, and Asia. Like any major exposition event, the AYP
Expo left a physical mark on Washington in the form of new buildings
and landmarks, new roads, and new transit systems. Two of the original
buildings from the AYP Expo including the Fine Arts Building can still
be seen on the University of Washington campus today.
Harder to track is the material mark the Expo left in Washington
– the thousands of photographs, pennants, postcards, and other knickknacks purchased as souvenirs of the Expo, only to be stashed away
in the back of drawers, shoeboxes, and jewelry boxes after the glow
of the Expo had faded. Luckily for us, the White River Valley Museum’s
collections have been blessed with a scattering of these forgotten
treasures, giving us a small window into the popular experience of the
Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition.
One of the more unusual souvenir items from the AYP Expo in the
Museum’s collection is a stacking block puzzle. The blocks are made
from thick cardboard and covered with paper prints on all six sides
showing different buildings from the Expo. The buildings are shown
in bright colors, sure to attract children, and show crowds of people
happily strolling along wide boulevards in front of the buildings, enjoying the gardens or simply taking in the sights. Though such a simple, if
interesting, toy might seem to tell us little about history, a closer look
can reveal some interesting facts.
GoodNews!
left Stacking Block Puzzle, A-Y-P Exposition1909. #XX.434
right Playing Card with image of Fine Arts Building, A-Y-P Exposition,1909. #XX.433
The images chosen to be used on this toy were of some of the most
elaborate and celebrated buildings of the Expo like the Transportation
Building shown in the photo. These buildings were made in a very classical form, called the Beaux Arts Style, which drew upon classical European
and baroque elements to create a sense of authority, opulence, and permanence in buildings. As a new state of only twenty years, Washington
and the rest of the west coast wanted to prove that they could hold
their own against more established centers of commerce and development like New York and Boston – and providing elegant, old-world styled
buildings would help to drive the point home. Even objects like this toy
could help to spread this new image campaign for Washington by being
given as gifts to family members unable to attend the Expo, allowing the
pictures of the buildings (and their implicit messages) to be seen by people who had never even set foot in the state.
Do You Know?
Who are these people? We have
an album of 49 photographs
seemingly from the same family.
The images range from this kind
of slightly quirky, ‘let’s all stand
on a floating log’ photo to casual
group images in the family buggy,
showing off the draft horse stallion, the hops barn, threshing, and
interior scenes in a Victorian era
home. If you have ideas, contact
Janet Wells at 253 804-5010 or
jwells@auburnwa.gov.
Cock-A-Doodle-Do
Curator of Poultry Kristen
Bruhahn selected 13 new
chicks to replace the hens
lost last year to an invading
ermine. Board member
Clarissa Ruston’s family is
raising the chicks that will
then move to Olson Farm.
The varieties include White
Leghorns, Rhode Island
Reds, Buff Orpingtons, Buff
Brahmas, Australorps, and
Barred Rocks.
Portrait Gallery
Thanks to Janet Wells,
Volunteer and Facility
Coordinator, you can now
see the shining faces of all 75
museum volunteers in the
Muckleshoot Room portrait
gallery. How many people
does it take to run this
museum? Seventeen board
members, four collections
caretakers, 55+ docents/
tour guides, and a few staff
members, and we are always
looking for more! Interested?
Call Janet at 253 804-5010.
www.wrvmuseum.org
• 253-288-7433
11
White River Valley Museum
918 H Street SE
Auburn, WA 98002
253.288.7433
2009 Board
Members
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
AUBURN, WA
PERMIT NO. 193
Address service requested
Ronnie Beyersdorf
President
Mike Gerber
Vice President
Doug Hedger
Treasurer
Lisa Scarff
Secretary
Richard Artura
Pat Bailey
DeAnna Burnett-Keener
Tom Campbell
Jan Cavanaugh
Gator Chamberlain
Julie Herren
Gerry Honeysett
Warren Kinggeorge
Michelle Marshman
Judi Roland
Clarissa Ruston
Jennifer Traufler
If you wish to receive monthly e-updates, send Janet Wells
your email address: jwells@auburnwa.gov.
Emeritus
Mae Yamada
Museum Staff
Patricia Cosgrove
Director
Kristen Bruhahn
Bookkeeper and
Administrative Assistant
Tara McCauley
Curator
of
Education
Erin McEntire
Education Assistant
Hilary Pittenger
Collections Assistant
Janet Wells
Volunteer and
Facility Coordinator
White River Journal
is a quarterly
publication of the
White River Valley Museum,
which is
supported in
large part by
the City of Auburn.
Farm Notes…
Although the Farm
looks quiet with no
contractors in site,
MARY
OLSON
F A R M many projects are in
design or are awaiting permits.
The parking lot and restroom are
partially designed and winding
their way through the King County
permits process. Pending a positive
review by the State Department
of Archaeology and Historic Preservation a back-log of projects will move forward:
bringing utilities to key buildings, building fences, planting gardens around the house
and native species along the stream, and creating gravel walkways between the
buildings. This fall the interior of the farmhouse will be fully restored, wallpaper
and all (WOW!), and BOLA Architect + Planning (our long-term partners) will
complete the design of the interior details of the barn.
White River Journal is edited by Patricia Cosgrove, designed by Susan Hernday
White River Valley Museum • 918 H Street SE • Auburn, WA, 98002 • Tel. 253.288.7433 • Fax 253.931.3098 • wrvmuseum.org
Open 12 noon to 4 PM, Wednesday through Sunday, and by appointment for group tours and research.
Admission is $2 for adults, $1 for children and seniors, and Wednesdays are free for everyone.
Provides Ongoing
Support