1865 Civil War Dres, antique dress, antique gown, robe ancienne, Victorian dress
Three-piece afternoon dress from the time of the crinolines, ca. 1865-1868. Origin: America. It is the time of the American Civil War when this dress was worn (or after the war). The dress is made of purple checked (with white stripes) silk. The dress consists of skirt, top and bottom bow. A dress from this time could not be more authentic. The upper part is closed in front with color-coordinated (covered) buttons. It is lined inside with brown, glazed cotton. The same lining can be found in the skirt. This runs out in a small train; it is nicely pleated in the waist area (on the back). The bottom bow has fringes at the edge; it also serves as a belt. Skirt and bow are excellently preserved, but the top is only "fair to good". The top gets the predicate from us because of the two underarm stains. Maybe the dress was worn in the rebellious southern states, where it was very hot. On the other hand: maybe the dress only survived thanks to these stains. It was no longer worn, was packed away and forgotten for many years. The decoration is not included.
Bust: ~ 76 cm
Waist: ~ 61 cm
Front Length: ~ 135 cm
Back Length: ~ 155 cm
From the Industrious Lady
First off, for our American readers, here are the SAE measurements of the dress. Before even looking at the conversiojn calculator, I can guarantee that this dress is probably tiny, and that is how it was able to survive for so long. A dress that no one can wear will not be worn and thusly not be worn out!
29" bust
24" waist
53" front length
61" back length.
Yup, tiny. Not the smallest, but in modern measurements this dress would be a size 2. This dress is most likely 1865 or early 1866. The front length is long enough that there was quite a full hoop in the front, but the difference in the back suggests that the hoop was most definitely not a perfect circle bell shape. An elliptical with such dimensions would that fullness in the front and the back, points to the year just post war.
An 1865 eliptical hoop from the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona Spain
The Sash is cute too and shows how the emphasis was changing and emphasis was starting to favor the back.
Godey's 1861
Godey's 1864,
the top part is called a basque and the bottom is referred to as the sash. It is suggested to make it out of the same material of the dress, as opposed to the 1861 plate that has contrasting sashes. This may have even been where the maker of the dress above came up with the idea for the sash.
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