The Ladies TeaStop in and grab a quick cup of tea! All sorts of ladies issues are disscussed here. Both Ladies and Gentlemen are welcome to join in the conversations.
Oh I know there were homosexuals out there, and yes you are correct, that it was frowned upon and punishable by "hard time" but also in some areas they were stoned or lashed, and more out of religious persecution then anything, and that was before the 1860's. Simple example would be the young man in Colonial House (oh that farce of a show. I laughed the whole time. It really proved why they don't have re-enactors do those shows.) It would have gone against everything for him to have "come out". A very stricht "don't ask, don't tell" policy if you know what I mean.
To sort of switch gears here, I came across this cdv the other day that was titled "twin girls". Any guesses where I am going with this? They are not two girls, but acutally one of each. Do you know how to tell the difference?
I shall tell you once you've had a chance to look at it. Some of you may know, so if you do, don't let the secret out. I want to see what others may think.
Another big misconception was that all women wore was black dark dresses with no pattern. So, I being the type of person I am have to disprove that theory. Not for confrontational purposes, but to show that you can't say "they never....", because somewhere out there they did.
The young lady here wears a printed silk. You can tell that by the shimmer of the dress. Could be a taffeta, but more then likely it is just a silk. Look closely at the design in the fabric. It is a rather large print, though soft, and is of foliage or flowers. In real life this dress was very likely blue with shades of blue, green and soft colors.
It is a great example of what women wore, other then the typically dubed pictures of "mourning" when in fact they probably aren't.
I'd like to venture a guess about the "twin girls". I think the one on our right is the boy because the hair doesn't look center parted.
Also I wonder about their feet. I can't tell if the one on our left is barefooted or shod, and if footwear signifies anything.
Also I wonder if the way to determine who's who is by who's on the left or right. I don't know if there was a custom of having men or women always stand to one particular side or the other.
Just an aside on shod vs. stockinged. I have a picture of my great-granduncle's family, taken in the 1880s. The two girls are toddlers, dressed to the nines... and both of them have little bare feet hanging down! I wonder if it was enough of a fight to keep the pretty dresses on, that the parents gave in on the shoes.
blue, even when I was little the only time I had shoes on was to go to school or in the winter. I always had a bloody big toe from stubbing it.
Jenna, here is a CDV og a relative.
Martin
__________________ "I want to bury myself in a den of books. I want to saturate myself with the elements of which they are made and breathe their atmosphere until I am of it."
--Lew Wallace, 1885
You are correct Zou on the hair part thing. Not many people know that. Boys had their hair parted on the side/sides and girls right down the middle like their mommies.
As for the shoes, they did grow out the things so fast that that could be a reason as well as to why you don't see allot of little ones with shoes on.
And thanks for the picture Martin. Very nice. None of my relatives were here in the states during the war, so the best I have is the grand bustle gown pictures from the 1880's.
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