Gown

Date1760-1780

OriginAmerica, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (possibly)

MediumBrown silk ribbed tabby (plain) weave; linen lining in bodice and sleeves.

DimensionsOL: 56"; Waist approx: 30"; fabric width: 19 1/4"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1983-227

DescriptionGown of plain brown ribbed tabby silk with a fitted bodice and full skirt open at front to reveal petticoat (missing). Bodice has an untrimmed neckline cut in a low squared "U", with edge-to-edge front closure and squared points at lower waistline. Bodice back has pleats stitched down extending unbroken into skirt at center. Sleeves end in pleated cuffs just below the elbows. Bodice and sleeve linings are made of tabby woven linen. Skirt, pleated to bodice, is composed of 6 panels of 19 1/4" wide fabric. No pocket slits.
Label TextWith its plain brown color and a waist size of thirty inches, this gown may have been worn by a mature woman. Oral tradition holds that it may have been worn by a Philadelphia Quaker woman. The gown has been photographed with an eighteenth-century cotton kerchief and an English silk quilted petticoat.
ProvenanceDealer attributes gown to Quaker of Philadelphia.