Fashion on the Ohio Frontier: 1790 – 1840

November 9, 2006 – January 13, 2007--Note: This exhibition has been extended one week to run through January 13!

Curated by Anne Bissonnette, Ph.D., Kent State University Museum

With portraiture and original articles of period clothing, Fashion on the Ohio Frontier: 1790-1840 provides a unique and surprising view into early Ohio culture.

The great migration westward during the early 19th century coincided with major changes in the history of fashion, textiles and communications. Through the study of fashion on the Ohio frontier, visitors gain new insights to the history of Ohio and the U.S.

“This exhibition shows that contrary to the homespun frontier stereotype, Ohioans had fashionable garments of sophisticated cut, construction and material,” said Curator Anne Bissonnette. “From Greek-inspired dresses of imported sheer muslins to skin-tight pantaloons made of deerskins, fashions of the early 1800s were daring, minimalist and much sought after.”

As it does now, fashion in the late 18th and early 19th centuries conveyed social status. Looking at the fashions worn by early Ohioans, provides a surprisingly complex picture of the people who settled and lived in this state.

Fashion on the Ohio Frontier is made possible by loans from the following institutions: Cincinnati Museum Center, Clinton County Historical Society, The Connecticut Historical Society Museum, Cornell University, The Bruce and Susan Greene Collection, Kent State University Museum, Massillon Museum, The National Society of Colonial Dames, Ohio Historical Society, The Ohio State University Historic Costume & Textiles Collection, Ontario County Historical Society, Pioneer and Historical Society of Muskingum County, The Ross County Historical Society, Salem Historical Society and Museum, The Warren County Historical Society and Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.

Join us for a free opening reception at the Riffe Gallery, November 9 starting at 5 p.m with a guided exhibition tour with curator Anne Bissonnette. Following the tour, at 6 p.m. enjoy light hors d' oeuvres and a cash bar.

The Riffe Gallery is supported by Ohio Building Authority. Media sponsors for this exhibition include Alive, CityScene, Ohio Magazine and Time Warner.

View the press release for Fashion on the Ohio Frontier: 1790-1840.

Tour some of the works that will be on display!

There are 9 images contained within this archive that are intended for personal/educational use only. These images are protected by a photographic copyright that belongs to the Ohio Arts Council. They, therefore, are not in the public domain. Please contact the Ohio Arts Council directly if you wish to inquire about obtaining reproduction permission.

Portrait of Franklin Henry Reed and his dog, ca. 1837-1841, oil on canvas, collection of the Massillon Museum, Massillon, OH	Portrait of Elizabeth Buchanan Woodbridge by Chester Harding, summer 1821, oil on panel, Chillicothe, OH, signed and dated, collection of the Ross County Historical Society, Chillicothe, OH	Red and ivory leather slip-on shoes with cut-out vamps, ca. 1790s, belonged to Elizabeth “Betsey” Putnam worn, in the Northwest Territory, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH
Brown printed cotton frock, ca. 1810-1811, made for Ben Mowry of British fabric from ca. 1775-1785, collection of the Massillon Museum, Massillon, OH	Portrait of Thomas Worthington, age 23, ca. 1796, ivory miniature, brought from western Virginia (now West Virginia), to Chillicothe, Northwest Territory, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH	Left: Light pink figured silk crêpe de chine gown and beige figured silk sandal shoes, 1824, worn by Elva Dana Fearing following her marriage to Henry Fearing, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH Right: Navy homespun wool morning coat and narrow drop-front Cossack trousers, ca. 1827-1828, made by Rachel Donelson Robards Jackson (Mrs. Andrew Jackson) at The Hermitage in Nashville, Tennessee, worn by Moses Dawson in Cincinnati, Ohio, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH
Left: Blue cotton plaid morning coat, ca. 1820-1825, The Bruce and Susan Greene Collection, New York Middle: Gray linen morning coat, ca. 1820s-1830s, collection of The Ohio State University Historic Costume & Textiles Collection, Columbus, OH Right: Blue and white houndstooth cotton morning coat, made by Ann Tetrick, 1836, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH;  white linen ruffled shirt, ca. 1800-1830; white linen trousers, ca. 1830s, belonged to Charles W. Palfrey, collection of the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, OH	Left: White sprigged muslin gown, ca. 1802-1807, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH Right: Ivory silk taffeta gown, 1817,  worn by Anne Catherine Spurck of Chillicothe, OH, for her marriage to Earl Dittoe of Somerset, OH, on July 4, 1817;  ivory figured silk bonnet, ca. 1800-1820,  Collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH; ivory kid slip-on shoes with yellow silk tassels, ca. 1800-1820, collection of  The Ohio State University Historic Costume & Textiles Collection, Columbus, OH	Portrait of Polly Parkman Bradshaw Foster by Edward Savage (1761-1817), ca. 1786, oil on canvas mounted on cardboard, collection of the Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH

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