Category Archives: Women in the West

Women in the West

Civil War Women’s Fashion

June 24, 2011 – 8:26 pm

Civil War DressThis picture is an example of a fancy dress that would have been worn during the Civil War era (1861-1865).  This particular dress is made of linen, so it would have been cooler than some of the other materials.  An upper society woman in the north or south, and perhaps even the west, would have worn dresses similar to this one.

The undergarments beneath the dress were called “under pinnings,” and included bloomers, a chemise, corset, stockings and garters, petticoats, and a hoop skirt.  The hoop skirt is what provides the billowing fullness of the lower skirt.

As was typical for the day, a woman would have worn gloves covering her hands made of netting (as shown here) or made from various types of leather.  Sometimes they were fingerless.  A woman never was seen in public without some sort of gloves.  The bonnet, reticule, and parasol completed the outfit.

In the western wilderness of Arizona, this type of clothing would likely not be seen outside of major populated towns.  My character Julia Colter, in A Heart Renewed, may have worn something like this on her father’s ranch in Texas.

 

 

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Arizona Territory Women in the West

Pioneer Women’s Fashion

June 10, 2011 – 7:10 pm

I recently had the opportunity to attend a fashion show of vintage clothing.  This picture shows what the typical woman would have worn in the West in the 1860’s.

pioneer-dress

There are many versatile features to this outfit.  The collar at the top was detachable as were the ivory colored lower sleeves.  This allowed the women to swap out a dirty collar or sleeves for fresh ones without having to wash the entire dress.  The detachable pagoda sleeves offered another benefit—a cool option in the heat.

The dress is actually two pieces.  The top would be more what we call a blouse today, though they did not call it that.  The second piece was the matching skirt.

One of the most interesting things I learned was that the aprons were not tied.  Long apron ties came along at a later period.  Instead, the apron was pinned to the dress.  The straight pins were placed upside down to prevent catching or slipping.

The bonnet shown in this picture is an everyday outdoor bonnet.  Our homestead woman would have worn this to work in the garden.

The material used for the dress, sleeves, collar, and apron was cotton.  The small pattern on the dress is an example of the calico often mentioned during the time period.

For a trip to town, she would have removed the apron, perhaps changed out the collar to something with more lace, and exchanged the bonnet for a dressier one of satin and lace.  She would have carried a matching parasol and her reticule (their version of a purse) probably would have been hand crocheted.

The pioneer woman’s clothing would have been a little more subdued than the large hoop skirts worn during the Civil War by women in the South and East.  The hoop skirts weren’t practical for frontier living.

I hope you enjoyed this closer look at the type of clothing Hannah and Betty would have worn in Prescott Pioneers 1: A Dream Unfolding.

 

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Santa Fe Trail Women in the West

Busting Myths: Wagon Trains

February 26, 2011 – 8:49 pm

Remember the opening credits of Little House On The Prairie, when they pull into the beautiful grasslands in their covered wagon pulled by two horses?  Maybe you’ve seen an old western movie where the wagon train is surrounded by Indians and the only animals to be found are horses and buffalo.

Along the Santa Fe, the primary route westward to Arizona and California, most settlers used a four or six team of oxen.  Some chose a team of mules.  Very rarely did they make the cross country trip with horses pulling the wagons.

Why oxen?  First, the oxen were much hardier than horses, able to cover the miles with less injury when pulling heavy laden wagons.  Oxen grazed on the tall prairie grass, unlike the horses or mules.  This meant the settlers brought less feed for their livestock.  If an ox did go lame, it could be left at a settlement or fort along the way.  Usually a new one could be purchased, for a hefty sum.  In the case of horses, there were no ready replacements strong enough for pulling the wagons.

The downside of oxen—they were slower.  Horses covered more miles in a day, which is why they were used for stage coaches, pulling lighter vehicles, and individual riders.  The oxen required a midday break of an hour or so, then the evening to rest.

So, for the purpose of relocating all of your family and belongings across the country, oxen were the livestock of choice for west bound settlers.  This is why I chose to use them as the livestock my characters purchased for their cross country move in my book, A Dream Unfolding.

 

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Arizona Territory Santa Fe Trail Women in the West

The 1860’s Woman Part 3: On The Santa Fe Trail

February 26, 2011 – 8:47 pm

While many women headed west on the Santa Fe Trail with their families, some hired on with the Army or freighters.

Regardless of why these women traveled west, their responsibilities remained the same.  Cooking, laundry, and medical care were their primary responsibilities.  If they had small children, they squeezed caring for their children in between other duties.

What stood out to these women along the journey?  Diaries and journals showed most women were concerned about the number of grave markers along the trail.  Some documented the varying plants, animals, and landscapes along the trail.  Disease and death topped their list of things feared.

Despite the tough journey, many women traveled west.  While their presence was often seen as objectionable on the wagon trains, their presence alone prompted better sanitation, better meals, and the men traveling with them tended to take fewer risks.

 

References:

Dary, David. The Santa Fe Trail: Its History, Legends and Lore. New York: Penguin Group, 2000.

Georgi-Findlay, Brigitte. The Frontiers Of Women’s Writing : Women’s Narratives And The Rhetoric Of Westward Expansion. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1996.

 

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Prescott Women in the West

The 1860’s Woman Part 2: Perception & Pursuits

February 26, 2011 – 8:45 pm

In the 1860’s, while eastern states began to see women more as equals, that was not often the case in the west.  The patriarch still ruled in the west, partly out of necessity.  Often women moved west with their husbands, brothers, or parents.  Many women worked long hours in the home on a farm or ranch, seeing to their families’ need for food, clean laundry, mended clothes, etc.

While many women were educated at least through the eighth grade level, the prevailing mindset of the period, especially in the west, was that women were not capable of understanding complex subjects like politics and statistics.  Socially acceptable interests for women included:  domestic subjects, geography, botany, history, zoology, and ethnology.

One source calls the mindset towards women as “feminine understatement”*.  Women’s intellect and reasoning ability was often downplayed, even by women themselves in both their writing and speech.

 

References:

Georgi-Findlay, Brigitte. The Frontiers Of Women’s Writing : Women’s Narratives And The Rhetoric Of Westward Expansion. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1996.

Savage, Pat. One last frontier : a story of Indians, early settlers and old ranches of Northern Arizona. New York: Exposition Press, 1964.

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Arizona Territory Prescott Women in the West

The 1860’s Woman Part 1: Occupations

February 26, 2011 – 8:44 pm

Western women in the 1860’s worked in a variety of occupations.  Traditional occupations included: school teacher, domestics, boardinghouse worker, and laundry and sewing services.

During the territorial days of Arizona, women worked in numerous non-traditional roles as well.  One source sites women working as type setters for newspapers, clerks for the territorial legislature, and even mining.  As the territory grew, some women worked as photographers, attorneys, mail carriers, hotel clerks, and missionaries.

On the western frontier, many women worked in the medical profession, often providing the only care when military or male doctors were not present.  Numerous women learned various remedies for common aliments.  They were also called upon in emergencies, sometimes working on severe injuries.  Very few had any sort of formal training.  But, life in the wilderness called many people to rise above the circumstance and their knowledge—improvising as needed.

In 1865, the legislature passed a law that allowed married women to act as an independent business person from their husband as long as they took in ad in the newspaper announcing their intent to operate as a “sole trader”.  Women who sold eggs from their ranches, operating as a sole trader, had legal rights to keep that money as her own.

For the single or widowed woman in territorial Arizona, a variety of career options were available, providing a secure income in a safe environment.

 

References:

Banks, Leo W. Stalwart Women. Phoenix, Ariz.: Arizona Highways Books, 1999.

Savage, Pat. One last frontier : a story of Indians, early settlers and old ranches of Northern Arizona. New York: Exposition Press, 1964.

Sharlott Hall Days Past Archives. 4 4 2010 <http://www.sharlot.org/archives/history/dayspast/days_show.pl?name=2004_09_05&h=%3Ecattle%20ranching%3E>.

 

 

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