Clothing & Accessories

Work, play, fashion, economic class, religious faith, even politics—all these aspects of American life and more are woven into clothing. The Museum cares for one of the nation's foremost collections of men's, women's, and children's garments and accessories—from wedding gowns and military uniforms to Halloween costumes and bathing suits.

The collections include work uniforms, academic gowns, clothing of presidents and first ladies, T-shirts bearing protest slogans, and a clean-room "bunny suit" from a manufacturer of computer microchips. Beyond garments, the collections encompass jewelry, handbags, hair dryers, dress forms, hatboxes, suitcases, salesmen's samples, and thousands of fashion prints, photographs, and original illustrations. The more than 30,000 artifacts here represent the changing appearance of Americans from the 1700s to the present day.

Patricia Hawley decorated and wore this hat while serving as a Wisconsin delegate to the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The hat is an official "cheesehead" manufactured by Foamation Inc. in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Description
Patricia Hawley decorated and wore this hat while serving as a Wisconsin delegate to the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The hat is an official "cheesehead" manufactured by Foamation Inc. in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Before arriving at the Chicago convention, Hawley collected the bumper stickers from earlier political events and purchased the pinwheel at the Ford Pharmacy in Appleton, Wisconsin.
It is not known when delegates began the tradition of decorating their hats at political conventions. Over time, delegates' decorations have become more elaborate assemblages. These creations are often statements of a party loyalty, emblematic of a particular cause, or, as was the case of this cheese hat, expressions of local pride. Most are meant to be fun and a celebration of individual participation in the political process.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1996
associated dates
1996-08-11-1996-08-16
1996-08-24-1996-08-30
described
Clinton, Bill
Gore, Jr., Albert A.
ID Number
1996.0311.01
catalog number
1996.0311.01
accession number
1996.0311
General HistoryThe uniform of the 5th New York Volunteer Infantry (Duryée's Zouaves), 1861, consisted of a distinctive jacket, vest, sash, baggy trousers, and fez.
Description
General History
The uniform of the 5th New York Volunteer Infantry (Duryée's Zouaves), 1861, consisted of a distinctive jacket, vest, sash, baggy trousers, and fez. The Zouave uniform adopted on both sides by many volunteer units during the first year of the Civil War was based on that of the elite Zouave battalion of the French Army, whose dashing appearance matched its fighting abilities. In their turn, the French Zouaves modeled their uniform and drill after the native dress and fearless tactics of their former Algerian opponents, encountered in the course of the colonial war of the 1830s.
ID Number
AF.24954.01
accession number
64127
catalog number
24954.01
Women's Jewish Welfare Board (JWB) uniform from World War I, consisting of hat, coat, shirtwaist, tie, skirt, and insignia. Coat and skirt are olive green wool gabardine, shirt is white dimity, hat is blue cotton, and tie is blue silk.
Description
Women's Jewish Welfare Board (JWB) uniform from World War I, consisting of hat, coat, shirtwaist, tie, skirt, and insignia. Coat and skirt are olive green wool gabardine, shirt is white dimity, hat is blue cotton, and tie is blue silk. Metal "U.S." insignia on coat lapel and cloth "J.W.B." patch with Star of David background on shouler and hat. Donated by the Jewish Welfare Board through The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America.
The Jewish Welfare Board (JWB) was organized shortly after America’s entry into World War I, consolidating religious groups in the Jewish community to become an official agency to work with the War Department through its Commission on Training Camp Activities. It was modeled after the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) and the Knights of Columbus, and other organizations that in World War I adapted military-like uniforms for women and men volunteers. The JWB built buildings and stocked libraries on army installations and distributed books, articles, Bibles, and prayer books supplied through its affiliation with the Jewish Publication Society. It established community branches in the “second line of defense,” by supporting Jewish workers in the shipyards, arsenals, and other military plants and factories, as well as hospitals and universities where the government had taken over under military regulations. Following the Armistice, under direction of the Navy Department, the JWB transferred its peacetime work to veteran’s hospitals and enlarged Jewish community centers.
associated date
1914-1918
ID Number
1998.0165.25.01
catalog number
1998.0165.25.01.01
1998.0165.25.01.02
accession number
1998.0165
catalog number
1998.0165.25.01
There is no information as to who wore this dress designed by Louella Ballerino.Louella Ballerino, who was born in 1900, is best known for her garments incorporating "South of the Border" motifs.
Description
There is no information as to who wore this dress designed by Louella Ballerino.
Louella Ballerino, who was born in 1900, is best known for her garments incorporating "South of the Border" motifs. A native Californian, Ballerino graduated from the University of Southern California and sold fashion sketches to wholesale California manufacturers. After marrying Melvin Ballerino and having two children, money difficulties after the Depression prompted her to resume selling fashion sketches. When this did not realize the money she wanted, she found a job in a custom dress shop. She also began teaching a class in fashion design and illustration. While teaching, she stressed that fashion was really the ability to adapt old ideas into new forms. Eventually, she began working as a designer for a ready-made manufacturer and then decided to manufacture her own line. That dress, first produced in 1938, incorporated small wooden blocks, and proved to be a good seller. Over the years, she featured many fabrics with Mexican inspiration. Later she designed a line of clothing for Jantzen. As a California sportswear designer who adapted ethnic designs in fabrics and style for the American market in the 1930s and 1940s, Ballerino is most often associated with smart, casual clothes and swim suits. She was one of the first California sportswear designers known by name.
This one-piece dress is constructed of a slub rayon printed in green, red, blue, gold, brown, and burgundy on a cream colored ground. The large print of a woman carrying a child against a South or Central American landscape is placed along the lower bodice and skirt section. The fitted bodice has a scooped neckline with piping at the edge and bias cut cap sleeves. A center back opening extends into a gathered skirt section with the bodice fastening with four green matte buttons. The dress measures 42 1/4 inches at the center back. The missing belt was most likely a green sash that tied in front.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1940-1945
maker
Ballerino, Louella
designer
Ballerino, Louella
maker
Ballerino, Louella
ID Number
2000.0124.001
accession number
2000.0124
catalog number
2000.0124.001
According to the donor, we believe that this dress was worn by Electra Wade of Northfield, New Jersey. She was married to Henry Beach.Although the dress is fashionable in its cut, it was most likely a work or everyday dress.
Description
According to the donor, we believe that this dress was worn by Electra Wade of Northfield, New Jersey. She was married to Henry Beach.
Although the dress is fashionable in its cut, it was most likely a work or everyday dress. The heavyweight linen from which it is made dictated that pleats rather than gathers be used to control the fullness at the center back of the upper skirt section. The donor claimed that the fabric had been woven by the wearer Electra Wade. Although we know that less expensive fabrics of this type were available from merchants, the construction of this particular fabric does appear to confirm the donor’s claim. If one looks closely at the fabric, it is evident that it was woven by a less skilled weaver, who periodically lost the pattern by leaving out a row of one of the colors. These mistakes are most noticeable part way down the center front of the skirt section and near the sleeve area on the front.
The dress is constructed of a two-tone blue and brown woven linen plaid. It is an empire style with a center front bodice opening that extends four inches into skirt section. The front bodice extends into the back at the sides and is applied over the back at the seams where it topstitched. There is deep U-shape at front neckline. A drawstring is attached to the dress at the back shoulder on either side and is inserted into a casing at the front neckline for tying at center front. There is a rectangular piece over each shoulder. A drawstring at the waist seam is attached the dress at the sides for an additional front closure. Blue and white striped linen lines the bodice. The lining is attached at the back and sides, but extends below the waist seam and hangs free. At the front the lining hangs free and is meant to lap over at center front, but with no visible means of closure. The long straight sleeves are set in far to the back. The skirt section consists of four pieces to include a straight piece at front, a triangular gusset at either side, and a rectangular piece for the back. The skirt back is pleated into the waist seam with box pleats. There is a fold over hem in skirt section.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1795 - 1825
1795-1825
worn by
Beach, Electa Wade
ID Number
CS.255655.001
catalog number
255655.001
accession number
255655
Volunteerism plays an important role in philanthropy in America. After Hurricane Katrina destroyed lives and homes in the Gulf Coast in 2005, many nonprofit groups organized volunteers to help the recovery effort.
Description (Brief)
Volunteerism plays an important role in philanthropy in America. After Hurricane Katrina destroyed lives and homes in the Gulf Coast in 2005, many nonprofit groups organized volunteers to help the recovery effort. Jillian Gross led a team from Habitat for Humanity in rebuilding homes in Louisiana.
Description
This hard hat was worn by Jillian Gross while working for Habitat for Humanity, a not-for-profit, non-government organization advocating affordable housing around the world. Hard hats are used for head protection on construction and other work sites. This hat has a lightweight shell with suspension straps inside that absorbs shock from falling objects. It is made by MSA Incorporated.
When Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in August 2005, Jillian Gross had worked with Habitat for Humanity for three years learning woodworking and house-building skills. Groups such as Habitat for Humanity marshaled volunteers, tools and lumber to step in when it became clear that normal avenues of housing assistance were overwhelmed.
In November 2005, Habitat for Humanity launched “America Builds on the National Mall,” a demonstration house-building marathon in Washington, D.C. in which the basic components of 51 homes were assembled within a week and shipped to the Gulf Coast. Upon completion of the project Ms. Gross, one of the house building leaders during this event, donated her tool belt, tools and protective wear to the Smithsonian Institution.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2005.0276.39
catalog number
2005.0276.39
accession number
2005.0276
This evening dress, made of yellow-green silk satin, with princess-style seams, has a very full skirt, measuring 409-1/2 inches around the hem edge. The gown's pleated portrait collar and short sleeves were cut all-in-one with the upper bodice panel.
Description
This evening dress, made of yellow-green silk satin, with princess-style seams, has a very full skirt, measuring 409-1/2 inches around the hem edge. The gown's pleated portrait collar and short sleeves were cut all-in-one with the upper bodice panel. A separate self-fabric belt with rhinestone buckle encircles the waist. A "Hattie Carnegie Original" designer's label is sewn on an inside skirt seam.
Hattie Carnegie, one of a few female entrepreneurs in the early to mid-20th century, was born Henrietta Kanengeiser in Vienna, Austria, in 1886. She came to the United States in 1892. Her first job was as a messenger, sometime milliner, and model in Macy's department store. She decided to change her name and chose the surname of the richest man in the country, Andrew Carnegie, to reflect her ambitions. With determination and an innate sense for style and business, she became a symbol of taste and high fashion to many Americans.
From the very beginning her wholesale and retail establishments attracted the wealthy. She opened her first shop, "Carnegie—Ladies' Hatter" in 1909, making and selling custom-made dresses and hats. As her business grew, she established her own wholesale house, which manufactured clothing with her label and sold in select stores. Well-known designers such as Claire McCardell and Norman Norell began their careers designing for her. By 1945, her shop on 49th Street in New York had added more departments, including American and French designs and accessories for "smart" dressing.
This dress was worn by the donor, Mrs. Morehead Patterson, nee Margaret Tilt, the daughter of Charles A. Tilt of Chicago's Diamond T. Motor Car. She was at one time married to Moorehead Patterson, CEO of the American Foundry Machine Company (AMF), New York City.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1948-1949
used by
Patterson, Mrs. Morehead
maker
Carnegie, Hattie
designer
Carnegie, Hattie
ID Number
CS.248146.006
catalog number
248146.006
accession number
248146
The frontpiece (also known as shield or badge) of firefighting helmets has been a distinctive part of the American firefighter’s helmet since it was developed by Henry Gratacap in the early 19th century. These frontpieces displayed a variety of information.
Description (Brief)
The frontpiece (also known as shield or badge) of firefighting helmets has been a distinctive part of the American firefighter’s helmet since it was developed by Henry Gratacap in the early 19th century. These frontpieces displayed a variety of information. The fire company's name and number appeared, often alongside the city or town where it was based. The frontpiece could also include the owner's initials and rank. Most fire helmets had leather frontpieces, but frontpieces could also be made of metal, especially on presentation helmets or those worn in parades.
This leather frontpiece was made in the United States around 1875. There is a large shield-shaped recess in the center of the frontpiece with a large white number “6” inside. One banner at the top of the frontpiece and two at the bottom contain white leather lettering that reads “VIGILANT/STEAM/FIRE Co.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1875
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.1494
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.1494
Black and white print; half length portrait of a man (R. Walsh Jr.) with his head resting on his hand and his elbow resting on an open book.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Black and white print; half length portrait of a man (R. Walsh Jr.) with his head resting on his hand and his elbow resting on an open book.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
maker
Sully, Thomas
Childs, Cephas Grier
ID Number
DL.60.3135
catalog number
60.3135
accession number
228146
There is no information as to who wore this dress designed by Adele Simpson. The Washington Fashion Group, a chapter of the Fashion Group International, donated this dress to the Smithsonian Institution in 1975.
Description
There is no information as to who wore this dress designed by Adele Simpson. The Washington Fashion Group, a chapter of the Fashion Group International, donated this dress to the Smithsonian Institution in 1975. This association of women executives began in 1931 at the insistence of a few prominent women in the fashion industry who wanted to promote more careers for women in the fashion business.
Adele Simpson, who was born in New York in 1905, created ready-made clothes for the sophisticated, yet conservative, American woman. She was one of the founders of the Fashion Group International and the Council of Fashion Designers of America. By 1924, she was one of the highest paid designers in the fashion industry, but her name was not known to the general public. At that time, manufacturers only put their name, not the designer’s, on their labels. When Ms. Simpson purchased Mary Lee, Inc. in 1949, where she had been working as chief designer, she changed the name to her own. She continued to run the business until her retirement in 1980. Her dresses were sold in the country’s leading department and specialty stores. Her customer list included five women who were or would become First Ladies of the United States: Mamie Eisenhower, Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon, Rosalynn Carter, and Barbara Bush.
Adele Simpson loved to travel and was interested in indigenous art from many parts of the world. She incorporated Indian fabrics in many of her collections, as evidenced in this dress, which was made from a sari.
This full length two-piece dress is constructed from a burnt orange and gold silk sari cloth. The dress is cut straight with shoestring straps, and it is semi-fitted with long darts on either side of the center front and the center back. Additional darts on the sides control the fit in place of side seams. There is a heavy gold metallic border at the bust and the hemline. A horizontal band with a curved wedge is inserted under the border at the bust for further shaping. There is a metal zipper at the center back opening. The accompanying shawl has a gold metallic woven border that is more prominent in the front. There is a snap closure covered with a bow that fastens over the shoulder. The center back of the dress measures 45 3/8 inches.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1960 - 196900
1946-1956
designer
Simpson, Adele
Simpson, Adele
ID Number
CS.310259.005
catalog number
310259.005
accession number
310259
Black and white print; bust portrait of a man (Henry Inman). Facsimile of sitter's signature is below the image.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Black and white print; bust portrait of a man (Henry Inman). Facsimile of sitter's signature is below the image.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
depicted
Inman, Henry
maker
Prevost, Victor
Nagel, Louis
original artist
Lazarus
ID Number
DL.60.3127
catalog number
60.3127
accession number
228146
A jewelry box made of orange celluloid with a pearlescent finish. The Art Deco style box has a hinged lid which is decorated with a tulip motif. The bottom of the box is lined with felt. It has the Amerith trademark. Amerith was a tradename of the Celluloid Corporation.
Description
A jewelry box made of orange celluloid with a pearlescent finish. The Art Deco style box has a hinged lid which is decorated with a tulip motif. The bottom of the box is lined with felt. It has the Amerith trademark. Amerith was a tradename of the Celluloid Corporation. It is also marked with the pattern name, Brinkley, which was introduced in 1929.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1929
maker
Celluloid Manufacturing Company
ID Number
2006.0098.1675
catalog number
2006.0098.1675
accession number
2006.0098
Black and white print; bust portrait of a man (James Fenimore Cooper).Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Black and white print; bust portrait of a man (James Fenimore Cooper).
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
depicted
Cooper, James Fenimore
publisher
Peabody & Co.
Childs & Inman
maker
Pendleton's Lithography
ID Number
DL.60.3130
catalog number
60.3130
accession number
228146
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1745 - 1769
ID Number
CS.006611
catalog number
006611
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1770 - 1795
ID Number
CS.006627
catalog number
006627
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1769
ID Number
CS.006584A
catalog number
006584A
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1820 - 1824
ID Number
CS.006746
catalog number
006746
accession number
28840
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1815 - 1825
ID Number
CS.006630
catalog number
006630
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1780 - 1800
ID Number
CS.006641
catalog number
006641
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1765 - 1775
ID Number
CS.006613
catalog number
006613
accession number
28810
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1920 - 1960
maker
Kerr and Company
ID Number
1983.0851.03
accession number
1983.0851
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1769
ID Number
CS.006584
catalog number
006584
accession number
28810
Men's fashion went through a revolutionary change during the last half of the eighteenth century, as clothing steadily shrank from a curvaceous, full-skirted style into a slender, vertical silhouette.
Description
Men's fashion went through a revolutionary change during the last half of the eighteenth century, as clothing steadily shrank from a curvaceous, full-skirted style into a slender, vertical silhouette. The waistcoat was a vest-like garment that a man wore, along with his breeches, over his shirt and under his suit coat. This particular waistcoat dates from the second quarter of the century and represents men’s clothing before it had begun to evolve.
The unidentified gentleman from Maine who wore this garment sometime around 1740 would have probably purchased it as a flat textile for his tailor to cut and fit to his measurements. When it was finished, he must have presented an impressive figure. His waistcoat, with its squared fronts and full skirts, would have draped over his torso and swirled around his upper thighs. Wide pocket flaps protruded over his hips, held out by three otherwise useless buttons beneath them. Moreover, the pattern of the silk fabric made his waistcoat appear even more massive. The design, which was woven just for this purpose, featured a huge floral pattern around the edges of the skirts and fronts that accentuated the expansive scale of the garment.
This waistcoat of brown tone-on-tone warp-patterned silk brocade is woven to form, with a diaper pattern–a small diagonal grid–that covers the ground and a large-scale serpentine leaf and flower design along the straight front base and center front edges. Both pocket flaps are also woven to form, and their lower edges are cut in mirror-imaged S-curves; they are sewn at either side of the center front on each hip. Although the pocket flaps have three decorative vertical buttonholes, the holes were never cut. Three non-functional buttons are sewn under each pocket flap.
Fifteen buttons are sewn along the right center front. Fifteen buttonholes are worked along the left center front, but the lowest four were never cut open and thus can not be buttoned. The upper eleven buttons are domed, with a brown silk diamond embroidered in four sections, surrounded by a small diapered ground. The lower four buttons, and the buttons under the pocket flaps, are mostly flat and covered with brown basket-weave silk.
The back skirts of the waistcoat are of the primary fabric, but the upper back is of plain-weave brown silk. The fronts and back skirt are lined with brown silk twill, and the upper back is lined with napped off-white cotton and linen fustian. The waistcoat is open down the center back from the shoulders to the hem. Three pairs of cotton tape ties originally spanned the slit, but they are now missing. The skirt is vented at the sides from waist to hem. The overall length of the front, measured from the shoulder seam to hem, is 36 in. (91.4 cm).
To see how the clothing of a prosperous man would have been worn, link to the portrait of an Unidentified British Navy Officer, about 1745, by John Wollaston, at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. The officer wears a waistcoat that is cut much like the brown silk one shown here.
This Web entry was made possible in part by a generous grant from the National Association of Men’s Sportswear Buyers, in memory of Joseph S. Klein.
Date made
1740 - 1760
maker
unknown
ID Number
CS.293501.003
catalog number
293501.003
accession number
293501
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1775 - 1799
ID Number
CS.006616
catalog number
006616
accession number
28810

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