Figure 10. — "How she went in," from Harpers Bazur. 

 August 1870. (Smithsonian photo 61585A.) 



checks as well as solid colors triinmed with white. 

 red, gray, or blue worsted braid. 



Bathing mantles or cloaks were worn to conceal 

 the moist figure when crossing the beach. These 

 garments were made of Turkish toweling with wide 

 sleeves and hoods, and were so long as "to barely 

 escape" the ground. 



In 1873 one good bathing cap was described as an 

 oiled silk bag-crown cap large enough to hold the hair 

 loosely. The frill around the edge was boimd with 

 colored braid. Many ladies ]Dreferred, however, to 

 let their hair hang loose and under a wide-brimmed 

 hat of coarse straw tied down on the sides to protect 

 their skin from the sun (fig. 9). 



Bathing shoes or slippers were generally worn when 

 the shore was rough and luieven. In 1871 manila 

 sandals were worn, but the most fimctional bathing 

 shoes are said to have been high buskins of thick 

 unbleached cotton duck with cork soles. They were 

 secured with checked worsted braid. Two years later 

 there were bathing shoes of white duck or sail canvas 



with manila soles. Slippers for walking in the sand 

 were "mules" or merely toes and soles made of 

 flannel, braided to match the cloak, and sewn to 

 cork soles. 



Throughout this period the social aspect of bathing 

 predominated over the therapeutic goals and women 

 were making a greater efTort to transform their bath- 

 ing garments into attractive and functional outfits. 

 Motivated by the presence of men at the seashore and 

 by the competition with other women for masculine 

 attention, ladies were more concerned with the style 

 of their bathing dresses and appropriate trimmings. 

 Thus bathing costume joined the ranks of other 

 fashions described in women's magazines. 



Now that women were frolicking in the water 

 rather than simply being dunked several times, 

 their costume became somewhat more functional. 

 Long trousers gave them greater freedom in the water 

 ahhougli the skirts which continued to i)e worn, 



Figure 1 1 . — "How she came out," from Harper's 

 Bazar, Augu.st 1870. (Smithsonian photo 61585B.) 



20 



BULLETIN 250: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



