Infants' Clothing

Title

Infants' Clothing

Description

Pages of the women's magazine are dedicated to illustrated depictions of child garments, titled, “Juvenile Fashion.” These illustrations are hardly representative of the children’s clothing in the Wylie House Collection. The elaborate dresses and suits represent the fictional, idyllic childhood existing only in these publications. Meanwhile, the stained and patched, simple garments of the Wylie’s convey the truths of mothering – constant sewing, mending, cleaning messes, and caring for children, all at once. 

From Left to Right: 

Infant Gown

1867 to 1874

This dress is thought to have belonged to one or several of Maggie Wylie Mellette’s children.

Underdress

Late Nineteenth-Century

Infant Gown

Date Unknown

Far from the “Juvenile Fashion”  page of Ladies’ Own Magazine, this stained, simple garment conveys the messy reality of mothering. The back of the gown is displayed here.


For more information contact the Wylie House Museum and for more information about the collections at the museum visit Wylie House Museum: Collections Overview.

Source

Wylie House Museum

Files

underdress.jpg

Citation

“Infants' Clothing,” Wylie House Exhibits, accessed March 28, 2024, https://collections.libraries.indiana.edu/wyliehouse/items/show/119.

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