Nursing Nightgown

This gown has several design features made to ease nursing. The straps could be unbutton, and there are discrete openings at the breasts. During this time, middle class women were receiving instruction from advice manuals, urging them to breast-feed their children, rather than hiring a wet nurse. Within the advice literature, breast-feeding described as an experience of natural, maternal pleasure. These ideas of pleasure and responsibility contributed to and echoed the larger shift towards a maternal ideal that both elevated the status of mothers, and further restricted what was considered appropriate behavior.

Courtesy of the Elizabeth Sage Historic Costume Collection at Indiana University Bloomington. 

For more information contact the Sage Historic Costume Collection.