L&T Archive 1998-2003

18th century swimwear

A couple of years ago, my husband and I went to an exhibition of George and Martha Washington's personal effects, etc. at a local museum. What I thought was interesting was they had a dress described as Martha's swimwear. Imagine a t-shirt made of woven fabric, rather than jersey, that extended from shoulder to the floor. The information card stated that Martha liked to take the waters at spas, so I suppose that would be like someone just sitting in a pool today. Considering that the Washingtons were what we'd call middle aged during the American Revolution, just the fact that a matron had a swim dress in her wardrobe tells me that it wouldn't be unheard of for a young lady like Georgiana to splash about.

Messages In This Thread

swimming
All sorts of information in the archives
Kathy, may I use this question as a "test case"?
18th century swimwear
Healthy vs unheathy seaside resorts
In real life...
No reason to suppose so.
Well, of course he was
Who is the Irishman?
I'm afraid.....
Thank you
swimming and bathing