Man's Waistcoat

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Subject

Clothing and Dress

Title

Man's Waistcoat

Date

ca. 1820s

Format

Length: 20.75 inches (52.7 cm)
Waist: 33.75 inches (85.7 cm)

Description

The waistcot front is made of a white corded fabric and has brown leaves printed on with a roller printing machine. The lining and back of the vest are made of hand woven linen. The garment is double-breasted, cut straight across the bottom, and has a shawl collar that stands up 3.25 inches at the back. The waist can be adjusted in the back with two pairs of tapes. The six pairs of buttons that close the front are covered with the same fabric that is used for the front of the vest.

According to the donor information, the vest was probably made by Anne and Elizabeth Browning for their brother Lawton Browning (b. 1792). The linen for the back and lining was likely made on the family’s property on which flax was grown. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, collars were made to sit high at the neck back. Shawl collars were popular during the 1820s and 1830s. 

References

North, Susan. "From Neoclassicism to the Industrial Revolution: 1790-1860." In The Fashion Reader, 3rd ed., by Linda Welters and Abby Lillethun, 50-63. London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2022.

Tortora, Phyllis G., and Sara B. Marcketti. Survey of Historic Costume. 7th ed. New York, NY: Fairchild Books, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2021.

Source

Donor: Harold W. (Jr.) and Mary Williams Browning
Browning Collection

Identifier

URI 1970.01.53

Contributor

Isabel Dhondt-Gorbea

Citation

“Man's Waistcoat,” Historic Textile and Costume Collection, accessed March 29, 2024, https://uritextilecollection.omeka.net/items/show/543.