Going Back In Time

I thought it would be fun to do something a little different today.  I was looking through some old magazines that I have saved through the years...not that I was reading these magazines when they were current, you understand, but somehow I obtained these and because I thought they were interesting, I saved them just for this moment...

Have you ever heard of "The Delineator" Magazine?  This particular edition is from October, 1901. I found this particularly interesting because this was the year my maternal grandparents were married. So these lovely fashions were probably the style of what my dear Grandma Tedlie was wearing at that time.

 This particular outfit is "For House Wear"

I wonder how many of you are wearing anything similar to this in your house today?
I'm wearing knit pull on long pants, a long sleeved knit pullover shirt, and a flannel shirt over that. It's kind of chilly here today...

 "Dressy"

Did any of you dress up like this for church yesterday? Just wondering...

 "Shirt Blouses"

I do love these hats too!

 In the picture above, in case you can't read the fine print, it says "A Ladies' costume is here represented."  "The trimmed tailored gown has apparently come to stay, its appropriateness for wear upon nearly all occasions being one of its chief recommendations."

I think it was only "here to stay" for about 10 or 15 more years, when the skirts started getting shorter and shorter...and then came "the roaring 20's"!

These lovely outfits were certainly at a "bargain price"! (By today's standards)

Of course we cannot forget the shoes...and the corsets! This one above "cannot break at the waist!"

"It matters not what the style of a corset is, or what is is made of, if it breaks at the waist line it is rendered uncomfortable and useless"!!  It says it is "good to work in, walk in or rest in."

No thank you...I don't think I'd be "resting" much in that thing!

Now here's a wonderful item: The "Warner's Rust-Proof Corsets"

Every pair guaranteed!  Don't you love this advertisement?

Not sure why rust was such an issue...I guess the stays in it were metal...sounds so comfortable, doesn't it?  

Here is my Grandma as a young woman, around that same era...

My Grandma Tedlie, 1903 or 4

My Grandma Tedlie on back row, next to her Aunt "Dode"
and her parents on the front row, circa 1903-4

I assume these fashionable ancestors of mine were all wearing some brand of corset. I wonder if they had the kind that was rustproof or the kind that cannot break at the waist? I wish I could find out...

 Now let us move up in time a bit closer to our era.  These next two pictures are from a magazine called "EVERYWOMAN'S",  and this particular issue was from November 1956.  I would have been six years old!

The top photo is an advertisement for "Modess", and the bottom one is a 

portion of the ad for "Kotex"...you know what they were...

"Just perfect!"

This ladies' magazine was pretty advanced for its time, in that it also included political cartoons, which reminded me of some of our current comments we hear...

They were talking about the President's golf game even then. LOL.

And then there was a very interesting article written by then Senator John F. Kennedy, responding to the question of "Would You Want Your Daughter to be President?"  Of course this was written before he actually became our President. 

The article is rather lengthy, but very interesting. Here are a few of the more notable quotes from the article by President Kennedy:

Well, here we are 64 years later, and we are still wondering if there will ever be a woman president. Based on the women candidates we have seen thus far in the preceding and upcoming election, I truly hope it won't be any time soon.  The right woman who can fill this role just hasn't come along yet...
Senator (President) Kennedy concludes his article by saying :

"The first woman President,  because of the fact that she is a woman, will have to be an extraordinarily capable chief executive.  She will require the charm and wisdom of an Eleanor Roosevelt, the leadership and military prowess of a Joan of Arc, the stately compassion of a Queen Victoria, the political sagacity of a Clare Boothe Luce, the courageous determination of a Sister Kenny, the pluck--to keep going under almost overwhelming odds--of a Helen Keller, and , in addition, all of the best qualities and skills of the Republican and Democratic lady officials mentioned earlier in this article. No doubt beauty and grace will also be important to her nomination and her election.  Is there such a woman, or is there a chance that there ever will be? Of course there is--and if the Democrats nominate her, she will receive my vote!" 

I wonder about that last sentence...I think if President Kennedy were alive today he would not recognize his Democratic party, and I am not too sure that he would vote that way again...but that is my opinion.

Well, I didn't intend for this to become a political post, so please forgive my wandering into that arena. I was merely sharing the changes in our women's lives and clothing and interests during the first half of the last century. Our grandmothers' and mothers' era as well as the beginning years of some of us "old gals" today...

When I look at these old pictures and fashions, I realize that we have come a long way since 1901. Our grandmothers didn't even have the right to vote until 1919 or thereabouts. I wonder what they would think of our current society and the roles of women today? Would they be envious of our so-called "freedoms", or would they warn us that we wandering too far from our true purpose in life. Of course, I do believe that a woman could become President of the United States. And I do agree with President Kennedy's assessment of the kind of woman that it would take to be a good President. Personally, I do not believe that woman has arrived just yet. Perhaps she will be in our grandchildren's time. Whoever she is, I pray that she will have a heart faithful to Almighty God and to our country, and that she will continue to hold up the ideals and standards that helped to create this great nation that our ancestors dreamed of.

Okay, I guess that's it for today.  I hope you enjoyed this little journey back into time. One thing is for sure, it does make me appreciate my comfy clothes and undergarments of today!