The move west of the 1860s was a defining period of time for the nation, but also for gender roles. Relatively wealthy women used to live the lifestyle of homemaker, without having the chore of manual labor. They were able to remain comfortably in the house, which strongly influenced the clothes they wore. Men expected women to dress modestly with long skirts and blouses, but with the move west, women noticed that dressing in outfits more suitable for men allowed them to manage easier in every day life. Their new chores meant working outdoors at times, which quickly allowed them to realize that they did not appreciate their baggy and heavy clothing. Some girls would rip their dresses, or even steal boys’ pants and shorts for the time they had to spend outside. The heat played a role in their decision to ditch their long skirts, but also the handicap long skirts brought to outdoor labor ("Schlissel"). Mollie Dorsey Sanford’s family moved to Nebraska City at a young age and she kept a journal of her events. Her journal has become an important document regarding Western American history, and is recognized as one of the most readable journals of the time period (Dorward). Sanford wrote in her journal about the problems that wearing the typical girl dress presented to her everyday life (Danker):
"It occurred to me how much easier I could get through the tangled underbrush if I were a man, and without letting anyone know of my project, I slipped out into the back shed, and donned an old suit of Father's clothes...”.
She went on to explain how this was not very amusing to her mother, who was afraid of Mollie losing her dignity. A generation gap was present in which some older women did not change the way they dressed, but the younger women wished to adapt to the times and did change their dress. Mollie also journaled about ripping her dress on a fishing trip (Danker):
“And I so weary, I ought to be in bed. We had a long ramble, caught no fish, but gathered plenty of wild flowers, scuffed our shoes, tore our dresses, got tanned and sun-burned, and were glad to get back to the old cabin again.”
This shows a deviation from the norm of women at the time. In other parts of the country, middle to upper class women would not do activities that involved tearing clothing or getting too dirty. This change in mindset about fashion and the ability to adjust it foreshadows the creation of a new, more informal dress for relatively wealthy women that would allow them to adapt to new surroundings in the west.
"It occurred to me how much easier I could get through the tangled underbrush if I were a man, and without letting anyone know of my project, I slipped out into the back shed, and donned an old suit of Father's clothes...”.
She went on to explain how this was not very amusing to her mother, who was afraid of Mollie losing her dignity. A generation gap was present in which some older women did not change the way they dressed, but the younger women wished to adapt to the times and did change their dress. Mollie also journaled about ripping her dress on a fishing trip (Danker):
“And I so weary, I ought to be in bed. We had a long ramble, caught no fish, but gathered plenty of wild flowers, scuffed our shoes, tore our dresses, got tanned and sun-burned, and were glad to get back to the old cabin again.”
This shows a deviation from the norm of women at the time. In other parts of the country, middle to upper class women would not do activities that involved tearing clothing or getting too dirty. This change in mindset about fashion and the ability to adjust it foreshadows the creation of a new, more informal dress for relatively wealthy women that would allow them to adapt to new surroundings in the west.
Sources:
Danker, Donald. "Mollie: The Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866." - 1959, Page Iii by Donald F. Danker, Mollie Dorsey Sanford. January 1, 1959. Accessed December 2, 2014. https://www.questia.com/read/71121603/mollie-the-journal-of-mollie-dorsey-sanford-in-nebraska.
Dorward, Rebecca, and Phyllis Larison. "Littleton : Sanford." Littleton : Sanford. January 1, 2006. Accessed December 2, 2014. https://www.littletongov.org/index.aspx?page=323.
Harris, Lowell. "Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records and Online Memorials." Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records and Online Memorials. July 12, 2011. Accessed December 2, 2014. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=73231747.
Schlissel, Lillian. "Women's Diaries on the Western Frontier." Accessed December 2, 2014. https://journals.ku.edu/index.php/amerstud/article/viewFile/2301/2260.
Danker, Donald. "Mollie: The Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866." - 1959, Page Iii by Donald F. Danker, Mollie Dorsey Sanford. January 1, 1959. Accessed December 2, 2014. https://www.questia.com/read/71121603/mollie-the-journal-of-mollie-dorsey-sanford-in-nebraska.
Dorward, Rebecca, and Phyllis Larison. "Littleton : Sanford." Littleton : Sanford. January 1, 2006. Accessed December 2, 2014. https://www.littletongov.org/index.aspx?page=323.
Harris, Lowell. "Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records and Online Memorials." Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records and Online Memorials. July 12, 2011. Accessed December 2, 2014. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=73231747.
Schlissel, Lillian. "Women's Diaries on the Western Frontier." Accessed December 2, 2014. https://journals.ku.edu/index.php/amerstud/article/viewFile/2301/2260.