Figure 1.--Pictured here are the two primary garments depicted in Greenway's drawings. Seen here are the longpants skeleton suits for boys and the long Empire dresses for boys. Note the younger girl wearing an open front green smock. HBC is unsure how realistic a green smock is. Note the elaborate hats. |
Some of the common garments pictured in the drawings are bonnets, straw hats, dresses, smocks, pinafores, tunics, and long pants skeleton suits, and strap shoes. Many children wear headwear, mostly bonnets and straw hats. The girls might have garlands of flowers. The girls always wears long dresses with brightly colored waist sashes. Some wear pinafores over their dresses. Some children wear smocks. Older boys wear longpants skeleton suits and tunics. The boys' skeleton suits are quite similar, although trim like ruffled collars varied. They of course always had long pants. Some of the boys' skeleton uits also have sashes. There is a remarkable similarity in these garments throughouts Greenway's many publications. Often they seem little different except for the trim.
Many children wear headwear, mostly bonnets and straw hats. HBC believes that the children in bonnets are girls. Greenway seems to have liked painting girls in bonnets. Thereare a lot of such images. The girls might also have garlands of flowers. Many children, however, fo not have ang headgear. Many boys wear brimmed hats--although not the wide-brimmed hats of the late 19th century. Some of the hats are quite fancy, even with plumes. Less common are caps.
The girls always wears long dresses with brightly colored waist sashes. It is the Empire style of the early 19th century hat dominates Greenways deawings. There ar no girls in short dresses with pntaettes that wuld havre been common at the time Greenway herself was a girl. Viurtually all of the girls wear long Empire dresses so influenced by classical Greek images. Greenway uses the same basic dress pattern thoughout her publications. Diversity is provided by color, although we have no idea how realistic the colors depicted are. There ius also diversity in trim, especially the waist sash. HBC believes that it is likely that not all of the children pictured in these long dresses are girls. Many of the younger children in dresses are likely to be boy.
Some children wear pinafores over their dresses. Te pinafores are easily recognizable because unlike smocks, they are sleevless. We have not yet fully assessed Greenway's draings, but she seems to have usually painted pinafores as white. Pinafores could be very plain, but they wre alsp pinafores with fancy trim. Th pinafores that we have noted in Greenway's drawing are usually quite plain. We have noted even older girls wearing white smocks over their dresses. We have noted noted boys wearing pinafores over their skeleton suits. We do know that younger boys did wear pinafores. Thus sime of the younger children in dresses wearing pinafores may be boys.
Some children wear smocks. HBC has noted some variation in these smocks. Some are open-front garments. In the early 19th century there appear some garments that are difficult to destinguish as to whether they are pinafores or smocks. HBC knows that such garments did exist a thy appear in 19th cehtury portraits. Greenway colors many of these garments. HBC had thought they were largely white. At this time we do not know how accurate such colored smocks were. Smocks are not the most common garment depicted. Most of the children generally wear either skeleton suits or dresses. Some children are clearly shown as wearing smocks over both dresses and sailor suits. HBC stresses that we do not know just how historically accurate Greenway's depictions are.
Boys commonly wore tiunics in the ealky 19th century. Tunics were especially common for boys from affluent families. Suprisingly, the tunic is not commonly represented in Greenway drawings. The skeleton suit is the most common boys' garment.
Older boys wear longpants skeleton suits and tunics. The boys' skeleton suits are quite similar, although trim like ruffled collars varied. They of course always had long pants. Some of the boys' skeleton uits also have sashes. Like the long dresses, there is a remarkable similarity in these skeleton suits throughouts Greenway's many publications. Often they seem little different except for the trim. Greenways draing seem to suggest that rather young boys wore skeleton suits.
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