Browse Items (488 total)

Arnold Scaasi (1930-2015) donated this evening gown, used in his 1991 Autumn/Winter show, to the Historic Textile and Costume Collection in 1997. This was a remarkable year for the designer, in which he received the Council of Fashion Designers of…

During the 1890s women began to move from domestic life into occupations such as salesclerks and typists. Dressing in separates became popular with the rise of the ready-made clothing industry, particularly shirtwaists and skirts. Charles Dana Gibson…

Dominating post-World War II fashion, the House of Christian Dior set a precedent that still carries its legacy today. Christian Dior (1905-1957) began his career in fashion working for designer Robert Piguet (1898-1953) prior to World War II. In…

This photograph was taken at the studio of Bundy & Stoddard, 320 Chapel Street, New Haven, Connecticut. According to LangdonRoad.com, Bundy & Stoddard operated at that address in 1884 and 1885. That date corresponds to the fashion worn by the…

This girl, named Elsie Beers, was photographed by C. A. Blackman in Danbury, Connecticut where she lived. Elsie was listed as attending a Normal School in Providence, Rhode Island, in summer, 1909. Normal schools educated high school students to…

The ambrotype was invented in England by William Henry Fox Talbot, but not perfected until 1854 by James A. Cutting. This ambrotype is held in a Union Case, patented on October 14, 1856 and on April 21, 1857. Union cases were made of a “union” of…

Ceil Chapman (nee Cecilia Mitchell, 1912-1979) worked in New York City as a designer from the 1940s through the 1960s. After working on Fifth Avenue for over seven years, in about 1940 Chapman briefly entered into business with Gloria (Morgan)…

This dress with matching shoes was donated to the university in 1984 by John Pierrepont Sturges (1912-2001) and his wife Alice Challifoux Ellsworth [Davis] Sturges (1914-2008). The dress has is a single tag sewn into the bodice, from a store called…

This two-piece women’s suit was donated by Michael McKenna and Carlos Benevides, owners of Artifice of Warwick, Rhode Island. The suit is comprised of a double-breasted jacket and straight skirt, made from a navy and white wool tweed fabric. The…

Child’s Congress Gaiters, 1865-1875 These boots are made of brown cotton serge with elastic side inserts called “goring.” The elasticized gore originated in England, but did not appear in the US until 1848. This style mimicked adult women’s shoes…