Unsung History25 Apr 2022

French Fashion in Gilded Age America

Paris has a long history as the fashion capital of the world. In the late 19th Century, American women, like European women, wanted the latest in French fashion. The wealthiest women traveled to Paris regularly to visit their favorite couturiers, like the House of Worth and Maison Félix, to update their wardrobes. For those women who couldn’t afford to travel, Paris came to them, via international expositions, magazines, and department stores.

I’m joined in this episode by art historian Dr. Elizabeth L. Block, author of Dressing Up: The Women Who Influenced French Fashion, who helps us understand how the American women who were purchasing gowns and dresses helped transform the fashion industry.

Our theme song is Frogs Legs Rag, composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. Image Credit: “Mrs. William Astor (Caroline Webster Schermerhorn, 1831–1908),” painted by Carolus-Duran, 1890. Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image is in the Public Domain. Audio Credit: “Nuit d'Etoiles (Starry Night),” written by Théodore de Banville and Claude Debussy; performed by Julia Culp and Coenraad V. Bos, 1917. Courtesy of the Internet Archive. Audio is in the Public Domain.

Additional Sources:

“Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895) and the House of Worth,” Metropolitan Museum of Art.
“‘The Gilded Age’ Costumes are Like a Late-19th Century High-Fashion Street Style Editorial,” by Fawnia Soo Hoo, Fashionista, February 7, 2022.
“How America’s Gilded Age Paved The Way For Fashion Today,” by Eilidh Hargreaves, Vogue, January 30, 2022.
“Downtown, Uptown: From The Dry Goods Store To The Palace Of Consumption,” by Keren Ben-Horin, Fashion History Timeline, Fashion Institute of New York, Mary 16, 2018.
“The history of haute couture,” Harper’s Bazaar, January 19, 2017.

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