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19th-Century Corsets
In Part II of our series on corsets, we look at changes in 19th-century corsets and an example from the Geneva Historical Society collection. -
The Early History of the Corset
The early history of corsets is tied to morality and the ideal figure in fashion. -
A Brief History of the T-Shirt
A history of the "plain white t-shirt." -
Modesty: Where Have You Gone?!
When it comes to clothing and fashion, what does modesty mean. -
The Perfect Purse
A brief history of purses. -
Anything Goes: 1960s Clothing
The 1960s emphasized youth and openness. It was a time when many rebelled against established ways. This was expressed in clothing, and, since human culture is a melting pot, anti-fashion became fashionable. Here are a few of the trends of the decade. -
1960s – The Clothing We Wore
There were more changes in 1960’s styles than I can begin to talk about here. I was a relatively conservative dresser, in part because my folks exercised control over my choices and my friends were also pretty conservative so there was not much peer pressure with which to deal. Still I remember it as a time of change in styles, rebellion demonstrated through clothing….or sometimes More » -
Innocent and Blithe: 1960s Fashion
Recently, a friend mentioned that he had asked a group of young people what came to their minds when they thought of the 1960s. “Hippies,” is what I thought, since I enjoy clothing, and hippies certainly had their own style. In this post, though, I want to talk about mainstream fashion. -
Briefly Out of Fashion’s Bondage
Since the dress reform movement of the 19th century has been studied and discussed at length. I will not re-tell that whole story. Instead, I will talk a little about the Bloomer costume and the Geneva area. A Bloomer dress (so named because Amelia Bloomer promoted the style in her magazine The Lily) was a dress much like the fashionable dress of the day, but More » -
Women’s Fashions in the 1940s
Fashion changes all the time, sometimes quickly and sometimes slowly. In the 1940s, women’s clothing did both at the same time. In some ways the evolution of women’s fashion stalled for a while because of World War II. -
The Zoot Suit
In keeping with our current emphasis on the 1940s, I looked in the local newspapers for zoot suits. Although zoot suits were known in some form from the early 1930s, the first Geneva reference I found was in 1942. -
Everything is Coming up Bloomers!
Elizabeth Smith Miller and the evolution of the bloomer outfit. -
What was a flapper, anyway?
Evolution of the term flapper as documented in the local newspaper
Historic Geneva is a history museum in the Finger Lakes region of New York State which focuses on the history of Geneva, NY, historic architecture, genealogy, and the area's industry and agriculture. The Society maintains four historic 19th century properties, an archive and library, a museum and runs programs and events related to the history of Geneva and the Finger Lakes area.