Maine Memory Network

Around 1787, English styles were at the height of fashion throughout Western Europe and America, such as full dresses and open front skirts. Large bonnets trimmed with feathers were also popular. This doll’s fashions represent clothing worn at the Early Republic's outset. It is interesting how English fashion continued in popularity within the new United States.

Trimmed in pink silk, this doll represents a shift toward narrower silhouettes, as seen with Lucia Wadsworth’s assembly dress exhibited nearby. This new style was inspired by Greco-Roman design. There is evidence this doll once wore a hat or bonnet, both popular in the period.

Dressed in a period cut away coat and breeches, this doll wears a chapeau de bras. Reminiscent of a naval officer’s hat, the style is somewhat synonymous with Napoleon Bonaparte. Very fashionable at the turn of the 18th to 19th centuries, milliners created the hats from felted beaver fur and silk.

Featuring a brocade overgown with an open front skirt, the doll evokes fashions from the 1790s. A cross-body shawl, also known as a sontag (although that name was not popularized until the mid-19th century) added warmth, while leaving the arms free for movement. The doll demonstrates the period’s appreciation for large hats and parasols.

Transitional in its fashions, this doll demonstrates a shift towards softer silhouettes and the popularity of striped fabrics, both of which emerged during the Regency Period (1795-1837). The long beaked hat style which covered the face, known as a poke bonnet, finds its origin in this period. The hat style remained popular well into the 19th century.

Empire style fashions, popularized during the French Empire period (1800-1815), overlapped with English Regency styles. Empire style characteristics include a high waist and narrow skirt. This doll wears a fur collar or shawl, and a poke bonnet, which covers the face. Perhaps the blue ribbons on each arm were meant to resemble long gloves.

Classic in his War of 1812 men’s fashions, this doll wears a cut away coat with tails, slim breeches, and high neck collar, complete with knee-high boots and a tall velvet top hat. By 1812, top hats were a staple in any gentleman’s wardrobe.

Dressed in fashions coinciding with Maine statehood in 1820, this doll exhibits both Empire styles, with a higher waistline and turban style hat; and fashions to come, like the gigot sleeve and fuller skirts. It is an interesting example of how clothing does not always fit neatly into a fashion era.

An artist, known only as “H.E.Z.,” created five watercolor fashion doll illustrations for, or at the request of, Maine Historical Society in 1919. The artist provided detailed descriptions of each doll and their garments.

Unfortunately, not all information is correct, for example some dates or fabric types. The dolls exhibited nearby are represented in four of the five drawings. A fifth drawing for an unrelated 1840s doll is also in the collection.

This collection of wooden fashion dolls, eight in all, and their corresponding watercolor illustrations represent clothing trends popular during the United States’ formative years. Known as the Early Republic, the period spanned circa 1780 to 1830.

The Early Republic included many different fashion eras and design periods, during which Americans embraced European trends, while establishing their own American aesthetic.