york town, including liberty fever,. she developed exhibitions for your, town and jamestown, including ken asieh women, which i highly encourage you to go see before it closes in january. also, forgotten soldiers, african americans in the revolutionary war. open until march 22nd, 2020. she will present a tailor-made revolution. please welcome kate grubber. >> good afternoon. you have to get through me before you can get too happy hour, so i promise i will make it happen quickly. mark twain said it best, as he usually does. close make the man. naked people have little to no influence on society. all right. but mark twain also said, the more i learn about people, the more i like my dog. so maybe, we shouldn't exactly take his word for it. also, he addressed like this. (laughs) so why don't we go to the british author, robert campbell, who wrote and 1740, seven no man is ignorant that it taylor is the one who makes our clothes, to sum he not only makes their dress, but in some measure, maybe said to make themselves. so, yes in short, clothes make the man. in the 18th century, people really had a relationship with their clothing, a relationship or at least a knowledge of the trades, men women, merchants, seamstresses, in slaved africans, and others who had a role in producing clothing. this is very true for alexandria, virginia, on the eve of the revolution. the residents of 18th century alexandria were part of a world that adhered to strict social hierarchies, and clothing and textile consumption presented a very unique dichotomy. it was based on choice and the nature of trade. i want to take you on a journey through 18th century alexandria, a city on the eve of revolution. our time machine is the only known surviving account book from a virginia taylor in the colonial and prerevolutionary period. can everyone hear me okay? i will try better. utilizing this account book as a guide, my goal this afternoon is to give you just a glimpse of prerevolutionary alexandria through the lens of how its residents acquired clothing. and importantly, the lives they lived in their clothing. hopefully, what will emerge as a more complete picture of a city on the eve of revolution, and how the simple every day active dressing had revolutionary consequences, or at the very least, eliminates with some of alexandria society wore to the revolution. let's get started right away. william lived in alexandria from 1763 to 1782, as the only known surviving account book from a virginia taylor from this colonial, period his record offers a rare and unique insight into the world of consumerism and material culture. it's a world in which alexandria is like the rest of colonial virginia are really deeply entrenched. provides the name of 103 customers that he measured unfit for clothing in his shop. garlands tailoring business flourished in alexandria shortly after its founding and 1749, when the virginia meeting at the college of william and mary and williamsburg propose, that thank, you yes, i invite public participation in this presentation so anytime, just go for it. thank you. the house of burj us is proposed an act for erecting a town at huntington creek in the county of fairfax. you realize i am literally preaching to the choir here. you know the history of this town. alexandria thrived on imports and exports. prominent planters exported hogshead, tobacco, a lot of tobacco, and wheat of course, across the atlantic in exchange for other goods like rum, sugar, and fashionable luxuries. we have also heard about factories operating stores and warehouses for scottish and english merchants to imported those goods across the atlantic. eventually, all those goods made their way right here to alexandria. by 1776, the city had a population of just under 2000 inhabitants. that population would grow to about 5000 by 1800. the residents of alexandria than were shipbuilders, carpenters, merchants, silversmith, blacksmith, jen tree planters and enslaved african americans. tavern keepers and white indentured servants also found themselves here. many of the inhabitants were immigrants from england and scotland and one was a taylor named william karlan. we don't have a portrait of william karlyn. in my mind, this is how i imagine him. (laughs) i am going to let that sink in for a moment. sort of middle aged, short, maybe a round figure, working on a bald spot or a receding hairline from excessive worrying that his seems weren't quite right. given the move towards handmade goods and things sourced from local materials and now of course i realize that car than was roughly the same age is i am now. i picture him a bit more like this. okay. (laughs) to be fair, how about that? unfortunately, i haven't been able to uncover too much about karlyn's life before he began to council here. according to family history, he was born in 1732 near a place called pale a bridge in england. he then lived in london before emigrating to virginia. i don't know yet whether he completed his apprenticeship as a tailor in england or virginia. probably in england, but he was 31 years old when he made his first account book and 1763. by then, alexandria was a power base for emerging jan trees who owned vast plantations on the cities periphery, including influential planters like george washington and george mason who lived within a few miles of the city center. scottish an english merchants set up shop in alexandria. they made the most of the city's population and karlan is a part of that. a family history states that his shop was located on the corner of king and royal street. guess what? you get to walk right by it when you go to happy hour. there is a handy little directional map for you. yes what guys? you get to walk right by it. here's a handy little directional map for you. spend some time last night. conveniently located next to a subway. i told my husband that is why he was so young. he was on the jarrett diet. anyway you can see the shop was prominently located in the city's developing downtown. it must have been a visible feature on the landscape. you really did not have to travel too far to visit the shop from the places where they themselves worked or lived. of the customers where i've identified where they live, it is a lot, no one was actually more than one mile away from the tailor shop. that includes george mason who owned a town house about 100 feet from the shop, and george washington's town house was less than half a mile away. i guess that is north, and not on the map. merchants and treatment were crucial links to jim tree planters in washington. they really needed these luxury items. silks, linens, pulls, cotton's. it would provide props of social performance of dominance. as a taylor karlan supplied the man of alexandria with many of these props that they needed to perform this act. the account book actually reveals that the customers who patronized the shop was were reflection of the cities demographics as a whole, which is really fascinating and i will get into that a little bit later, but before we can fully comprehend, we need to talk a little bit about the relationship of the taylor to his clientele in the form of the applicant in art and ministry of the taylor's trade. we talked a lot about george washington today. when he ordered suits and delivery from his london taylor, he included the language, the suits must be taken my measures taken of men as nearest to their side so you can judge. the service of these deliveries were intended for five feet nine inches and five foot four height and proportionately made. these are simple instructions that were essential communications to a tailor. if you are expecting him to construct a hands-on fitted garman. it's important to remember here that until the very recent past, closure clothing was not a luxury item like we associate it so shaded today. it was just clothing construction. in the mid 19th century, hand sewn remained the standard mode of production for any garment, whether it is where was -- an artisan or enslaved. men and women in the 18th century who are familiar with the needle and thread and they could probably make some simple repairs, maybe some household items and linens as well, but fuller garments required the knowledge and skills of men and women who learned their trade through a partnership with the master tailor. article such as breaches, coats, waistcoats, they fit closely in precisely to the body. it required the skills of a tailored to construct. at taylor skill lay in his ability to fit, measure, or cut garments for a man. this is just men here, actually. i want to make a quick point. i'm talking about men being customers, because women's garment construction was completely different. i'll talked about that at the queue in a. these are just men and men's garment here. with some exceptions. it's 18th century corset. hello because most colonists lack the ability to construct their own clothing, somewhere along the line they really needed to utilize the school of taylor at some point. even the virginia company included a tailor and 16 oh seven. they actually send six more tailors to the colony and 16 away, making tailors one of the most represented trade in colonial virginia, second only to carpenters in the early years of the colony. if you know anything about what happened to the virginia company, the fact that there are predominant, preoccupation was what we need more taylor's, that says a lot. they are not eating but -- got a look good. that trend holds out throughout the 18th century. the virginia gives that, taylor's advertisements make up 6% of total tradesmen's advertisements from copies of the gazette from 1736 to 1780. only a third behind tutors and doctors. and alexandria were karlyn is of course, a distribution of the cities occupation began from 1764 to 1800, reveals that 20% of local artisans were involved and clothing crafts. just like 17th century jamestown, its second to those in the construction trade. this is an important part of our everyday life in the society. in this overwhelming number of tailors on the landscape speaks to the necessity in a society where individuals did not routinely make their own clothing. why were tailors and their skills so important to communities like alexandria? according to one 18th century source, a tailored must be skillful enough to quote, be still a good shapewear nature has not designed it. to accomplish this, a tailor needed to take systematic measurements across a man's body. very detailed measurements, so male hat at may i have a volunteer who knows french. i need somebody. thank you. i do not want to butcher this on c-span. please, if you could read the title of this book for me, please. . the art of the tailored descriptions of arts and skills. >> thank you very much. (applause) you see why did not want to tackle that? i took latin, and it's useless. thank you for saving me from that embarrassment. this is the 1769 treaty on the art of tailoring. a chronicles 20 different measurements needed on a man's body in order to construct a well fitted and well cut suit. the author has written in english, thankfully. a tailor must take the measurements of the person for whom the clothes are going to be made. a strip of paper, one inch wide of the opposite length is used. it is called a measure. it is placed on the body wherever the sizes require and each measurement is marked on the measure by a snip of the scissors. he's careful measurements ensured that the finished garment would fit the customer properly and the weight garments fit a man's body was really as important as the fabric choice. george washington's relationship with clothing provides a really fun lens to explore the importance of cut and fit even further. when washington sent orders for close to london taylor's, he consistently noted his size and lanky stature. he was the tallest. he knew that these details were necessary in the construction of fitted clothing. in order for a suit, washington wrote to charles lawrence. let it be fit in other respects for a man full six feet high and a proportionately made. further correspondents from washington to his london factors reveals that washington was just not satisfied with the quality of the garments that he received from his london taylor. i have hitherto had my clothes made by one charles lawrence, an old fish street. whether it is the fault of the taylor or of the measures sent, i cannot say but certain, it is my clothes have never fit me very well. to eradicate his own frustrations with fitted garments that he was receiving from london, washington turns to karlyn. he brought to karlyn shop coats that needed to be mending. suits that needed altering. washington -- he could widen the breath of coats. he could restore an appropriate shape to the tall and proportionately made gentlemen. karlyn charged washington to myself, one day altering your close to altering your breaches to altering your gray coats, so on and so on. as a gentleman in a prominent city, excuse me. i'm so sorry. keep looking at washington for a while. george washington's really at the top of alexandria's social ladder. he did warn that, he warned his friends that fine clothes -- he really knew as his ali contemporaries how to dress the part. we've already seen that washington turned to karlyn to fix the mistake of london taylor's, but he also came to a local tailored for making new clothes themselves. washington ordered a variety of garments from karlyn including coats, waistcoats, leggings and even more formal attire. breaches however, should be noted, where the most common garment that karlyn made for george washington. though he continued to play place orders for suits and coats her miss taylor in london, it seems washington may have given up on charles lawrence is ability to accurately judge the height and breadth of his client for the purpose of making comfortable and satisfactory breaches. by june of 1768, washington wrote to lawrence, i think that you have generally sent my close to short and sometimes too tight, for which reasons i think it is necessary to mention that i am full six feet high. i love how he just blames it on everybody else. again, carlon -- in alexandria's complex and visible social order. revered and respected within the region, washington's case -- his tastes really set the bar for the remainder of society who were seeking to emulate fashionable dress for each entry. so far we have explored washington's account with karlyn, but artisans, merchants and enslaved man also passed through the doors of carla taylor's shot. it showed that it can uphold so social hierarchies an inequalities -- the taylor space itself and sure that even for a brief moment, social mixing could be explored and experienced in this prerevolutionary space which was quite rare at the time. additionally, the very act of being measured and fit for clothing was something that nearly all members of the social strata could experience in the 18 century virginia. we are going to bid washington and edgier. we are going to explore some of the other 130 members of alexandria's community. accounted for over 2000 transactions in that surviving account book. the karlyn constructed garments for washington and george mason and the fairfax family. at least 38 members of alexandria's merchant class sought his talents as well. among the men in this category is james kirk, hopefully someone that you have heard of. he is noted for hosting the prudish, nicholas crystal when he seated in alexandria and 1774. john carlile, a high-profile merchant, a frequent customer. in addition to the chancery of merchant alexandria, he had a working relationship with the artisans and tradesmen as well. it represents a white cross section of the man who worked with their hands in dirty shops, at smoke and soot field -- blacksmith. shipbuilder thomas fleming. silversmith, charles turner. in all, he produced close for architects to blacksmith, when builder, to cooper's, one hatter, to ship, one silversmith, no partridge is no pear trees. he produced 205 garments for alexandria's artisans, including 38 waistcoats, 36 coats and 17 suits with fabric choices that range from a velvet suit for hatter jonathan butcher, to a country suit for silversmith charles turner. making breaches, drab suits in between. karlyn also served a other equally visible yet marginal members of alexandria society. the plantations and home of planters and in the workshops of the cities artisans in taverns as well. carlon made clothing for princesses and some of alexandria's artisans as well. alexandria made provisions for the clothing of their premises and the accounts when they come to carlon themselves. they would later try to -- in addition to the premises alexandria's free citizens also utilized a workforce of both white servants and enslaved african americans and many customers in carlon's have not been identified. that is because at this time, alexandria really relied heavily on white servitude. it is -- many of these unidentified individuals who were members of the social class alexandria. just one example, robert adam, he may things for himself and at least 12 other individuals that are only identified by their first names. it is possible that some of them were enslaved or otherwise somehow part of adams working household. further to this point, carlon's accounts provide an interesting view of how alexandra alexandria's -- delivery accounts for over 50% of the clothing that carlon produced for enslaved men, the taylor constructed garments for members of the enslaved community working for and owned by alexandria's -- interesting, lee clothing makes specifically for the enslaved members of alexandria's community account for over 10% of the total transactions in the account because of all. 37% of karlan's customers also purchased clothing for enslaved men at the same time they purchase clothing for themselves. i should mention to that i am a quantitative historian, and i do not think concluded that in my biography. really sorry about that. i think that is the most matthew will hear today. but the types of clothing that karlyn produce for these men is typical of what they would receive from this taylor. all carlon produced is 90 coats, 39 suits, seven great coats and 14 frocks for enslaved men owned by other alexandria citizens. i would like to do a bit of -- further into the clothing that carlon made for these and slave members of alexandria society. we know precious little about this very prominent and visible part of the city's population. through his account book, we gain so much more insight into the material on the eve of revolution. his accounts can help us understand the variety, the quantity and the life cycle of clothing within a broader length lens of the material life of the enslaved. joe, and enslaved man owned by silversmith charles jones appears to receive clothing from carlon twice in 1772 and 1775. he was a very infrequent customer. and 72 he received a coat. leather reaches are like the blue jeans of that century this is really interesting to me, given the fact that shows next appearance in any document in any kind of his tory's record is in the virginia gives that. it is dated september 12th, 1777. here we go. the odd reads run away from a subscriber in fairfax county near alexandria. about the 10th of august, a young regrow man named joe about 21 years of age, i feet eight inches high, well made he had a shirt and trousers but may probably changes close. how many of us have read advertisements like this in the 18th century? we all too often read these advertisements and we assume that runaways like joe stole clothing that did not belong to them to change into, or maybe we never paid attention to the statement that he changed his clothes anywhere. given the presence and his account book, we would assume he had a small wardrobe, at least a coat and an additional parent reaches to aid in his escape. i find it interesting that and working backwards from his age in 1777, we know something now about joe. he was about 16 years old when he entered carlin's shop and received a new coach. by the time he was 19, he had a pair of leather breaches that needed mending. these are small details, i get that. that every little bit helps us to piece together the lives of someone like joe. without these little details we would not know that this man ever existed at all. further to this point, charles jones points out that show made attempts to enlist as a free man. remember, it's 1777. perhaps chose wardrobe enabled him to better play the part of a free man, instead of his actual runaway status that he was. perhaps close from carlin's, of coat and breaches aided and chose escape to freedom, or his escape to fight for the freedom of the country. as i mentioned before, the majority of clothing that carlin produced for enslaved man was in the form of liberty. the formal custom-made uniforms worn by insulate grooms, ballets and other domestic staff. we are going to return to washington here because washington was a frequent client of carlin when he needed the construction for many of his domestic staff, including william. his enslaved valet and longtime companion. willie came to mount vernon after washington purchased i'm from another estate and 1768. in 1769 he needed -- this is when he arrives at mount vernon. in the summer of the eight year, carlin charged washington's account for making -- putting pockets into and repairing the suit. possible also for william, because we know washington's household delivery, delivery in the washington household was red and white. any account book we can assume -- william le around at arrived at mount verdant when he was 18 years old. he received -- this is surely not his first shirt of liberty and it would not be his last. william makes another appearance in the accounts. in june of 1771, again carlin washington for making breaches and livery coats. he also made a suit and breaches. who are these people? frank was williams younger brother who also came to the estate and 1768. frank served as a butler and was probably also furnished with washington's signature red and white livery. there is a man by the name of that in mount vernon's slavery data base. he could have been a groom or an artists and on the property. carlin also charge washington for charging for a pair of reaches for a child. he was likely a recipient of jacket and waistcoats that carlin also constructed in 1771. it's really one of many accounts that can tell us much about the material life of alexandria's enslaved population. consider this a pause in a much longer and much needed conversation. i have more. if you want to know more. we've explored the win, the where, and the who. let's get back to the clothes themselves and explore, what does it all mean? for most of the 18th century, colonists were striving in british style and all things. we thought of ourselves as british subjects and we really wanted to look and dress like them to. we utilize the same textiles, colors and fashionable cuts across the atlantic that were prevalent. dedicated to british that shun colonists may have been, virginia's climate forced change. not hard to believe right? william huge grove remarked that virginians quote, effected london dress in ways and all times except in the summer months is what he said. virginians constantly adapted to what past four fashionable. in response to the region's climate. they designed houses with passageways when he provided a home with necessary social sorting but also the cool air flow throughout spaces. when jean arrived in august of 1774, it is just now hitting me how hot that must have been. he may not have been expecting to experience such a sweltering climate. he says i would suppose you would scarce not know me now. this is a letter he wrote home. they're being nothing either brown, blue or black about me. but the head and the feet. i'm being dressed in a short cloth coat, a vest coat and breaches all made of white cotton without any lining and thread stockings and wearing my own hair curled around like a week. he is painting a picture of the characteristics perceived abnormal clothing. and it includes as to how virginians adapted their fashion to accommodate for the regions of intense temperatures, which again is nothing you to. us further to this point, a young traveler received advice from his brother. before embarking to virginia and 1765. quote, your clothing in the summer must be as thin as possible, for the heat is be on your conception. you must carry a stock of linen waistcoats made very large and loose, so that they may not stick to your hide when you perspire. carlin knew how to clothe alexandria's for the heat. carlin specified the color white 44 times. that made the third most popular color of any garment to come out of a shop. carlin dressed washington in different fabrics, readable cotton, and linen and fabrics to survive in the sweltering heat. carlin also produced clothing in their description was specifically for wearing in the hot summer months. he is making things that he is calling summer coats, summer suits, summer waistcoats. all of these things indicating that we are dressing for the climate. as unbearable as virginia's summer heat could be, i eat today, virginia's winters could also be bitter believe it or not. and december 1774, nicholas crystal, the englishman living with james kirk he wrote that virginia's weather was quote exceeding cold and frosty. exceeding. and that the winters were more severe than i have ever felt in england. perhaps he acquired winter garments similar to what carlin would make. he produced clothing that were specifically for where for virginia coldest month including great coats, winter suits, winter coats and one great winter waste coat. but carlin also constructed drawers for george mason on a particular cold november. we are going to stick with me since accounts for a few moments. thank you to that final transitional sentence. mason's account book from 1764 to 1775. the transactions provided are in an interesting window into the ways in which clothing from carlin's account book marked his passages. he made clothing for his sons. to further illustrate this point that clothing could celebrate lives milestones and they can acknowledge mortality. beginning in 1767, mason began making purchases for his sons at the time that he made purchases for himself. they are all going together as a family and making these orders. his oldest son george was 14 years old. william withstand and thomas was eighth. excuse me, thompson. before they were breached, young boys dressed and gowns, not unlike their female relatives. these counts allowed children both free range and movement but also accompanied their stays. the undergarment that gently taught boys and girls proper upright posture, probably none of us are really displaying today. boys. stopped wearing their gowns their stays at the time of their transition from greg gallons to breaches which occurred sometime between the age of four and eight, somewhere in that range. i mentioned the textile -- the change from pedicures to breaches was a big event in any boys life. it's symbolized growing up and meet moving out of the female domain into the mail. so you are leaving your mother and the nursery and moving into what is going to become an adult male life. march 18th, 1772, may has been that big day for mason's youngest son, sean. he entered the carlin for a coat and breaches. he writes hair bind but it is probably, excuse me hair bind but hair probably her bond. born on april 4th 1766, this event occurred shortly before john's sixth birthday. together with the age at which john first appears in the account book, and taking that into consideration with his families -- it's really likely that this first transaction describes the first event that signify john's entrance into manhood. this is probably his first suit. that moment where he is being breached. john would actually grow up to become an extremely successful merchant, anchor and businessman in french as well as alexandria. his adult life begins on the corner and william carlin's taylor shop. as a young child he learned his adult life with systematically begin in a tailors shop, but just when you're later he learns that clothing could signify death as well. when his mother and died of childbirth in march of 1773, the masons went into a period of mourning. this necessitate it specific social props, and in this case, black morning suits. and oh you are and i and she. karlyn charge the masons account for quote, making your suit of mourning, making your son george suit and making sun shone a suit of crepe. only one year after john received his first suit of clothes from carlin's hands, he received morning attire as well. at seven years old, young sean learned the role that clothing would play in life and in-depth. thankfully, them the mourning it's not only for wet karlyn produced and clothing. he produced at least two wedding suits. when for a charles alexander, another one for attorney robert. there are no clues in the account but to tell us what the suits may have look like. don't you hate that? carlin's account book illustrates that clothing functions beyond the basic necessity and as a medium to protect when itself from the climate. clothing accompanied life. it could signify life and life's right of passage. while the majority of the clothing in this paper has focused on the clothing that carlin produced for his injury, he account book is evidence that all members of alexandria's social strata found themselves in an amongst the walls of carlin's tailor shop. by the time he carlin set up his shop, the colonies were well entrenched, not the american revolution but the consumer revolution. those societies were heavily stratified on the basis of wealth and property ownership. the revolution and production, marketing, and credit, made it possible for more people to purchase goods than ever before. beyond -- the for that credit crisis that face lyndon banks and 1772, the credit was widely available and easily accessible to a lot of people who asked for it. in alexandria like many other city centers, and certainly did not need to be a member of the jim sri leach, their taste for finery also extended to their wardrobes. nowhere is this more evident than in carlin's account book. the orders he took on credit reflected the needs of how people were dressing for success and dressing to impress. colonial virginia's population was deeply stratified. even the lowest classes of society desire to obtain a higher quality of life and many earned to yearned to emulate. an english writer roads of the impact of fashion. and strong emulation all of the -- sparks perpetual restless ambition in each of the inferior ranks to raise themselves to the level of those immediately above them. i think she would have said that in downtown abby. but this is actually an 18th century quote. in addition to that consumer revolution,, customers at carlin shot have another revolution on their mind. the american revolution. the course of only a few years, to maintain the british nurse, had given way to 30 proactive. showing their discontent with parliament. not the king. discontent with parliament resulted in various measures, not in the least of which involve the non importation of british goods, including the yard goods and ready made clothing needed to perform those social acts. this desire to enact patriotism via consumption or lack thereof was fervent, especially in alexandria. when george washington circulated copies of the fairfax county, non importation agreement which was written in 1770. william carlin sewed, cut and stitched fabric for great britain and around the world, funneled through those british ports. the colonists decided to stand up to british for a lack of consumption, stood to impact carlin's business. by comparing the years in william carlin received the most business, the activities of his customers and the gentleman who signed the fairfax county county not importation agreement it's clear to see that the revolutionary fervor did not have and i get it impact on carlin, as a matter of fact, 1770 is this guy's busiest year. it's unbelievable. of the members of the planter and merchant elite who signed that non importation agreement in fairfax county, at least eight or active, extremely active customers of william carlin, including john donaldson, peter wagner, george mason, john carlile, robert adam, john west junior. these are prominent alexandria and fairfax county names. as a fairfax agreement, renounced all importation commodities from britain including textiles, one would assume that carlin's business would show symptoms -- but carlin's this in the sawmills doubles from 1769 to 1770. what accounts for this? karlyn's business may have doubled because they worry eager to utilize the textiles in the colonies before supplies came to a shortage. maybe this is a simple matter of supply and demand. that makes sense. it is also possible that clever merchants in alexandria -- who purchased an abundance of textiles from great britain and 1769 and 1770 in anticipation of just this sort of thing. he is trying to stop his shelves, waiting for someone to say, we will not import that stuff anymore, so he could say, well, i already have it here for you. you do not have to be in violation of that agreement at all. he is a pretty small smart guy. by karlan -- no one stood to be in violation of the non importation agreement. it is also possible that members of the dutch entry such as washington who did receive close from london taylor's made the choice to shop locally and to patronize the local tailor for new clothes and 1770 instead of going abroad. it may be a chicken or the egg. there may be different factors contributing to this hike or spike and consumerism. regardless of the reasons that maybe behind carlin's business and 1770, it's clear to see that even when alexandria citizens decided to curve their enthusiasm for british goods, they still want to look good doing it. there is no harm in, that right? and 1765, a writer in the connecticut current newspaper noted, no age can come up to the president went by their address the clerk, the apprentice or the shop men are not distinguishable from the master, nor the servant made or even the cook from her mistress. the analysis of william carlin's account book verifies this proclamation that was made by this connecticut writer. and they are 1763 to 82 predominantly before the revolution, carlin produce clothing for whole members of alexandria society. from servants to slaves, artisans to merchants, jen sri -- they were clothing from carlin the taylor. they passed through the walls of that merchant tailors shot. william carlin measured alongside their domestic staff. william carlin measured cooper's blacksmith's, joiners, tavern keepers inside the walls of his shop. he produced clothes worn by mauve washington and mason. he often made the close of the men and the women who were doing that work. carlin offered these carefully's home made services -- to measure and fit men for their clothing and providing them with the clothing that they needed to cope with the new climate, to facilitate also ushering in milestones and changes. entrance into adulthood, mourning family members. marriage. carlin provided alexandria citizens with the clothing made from any textile that the market had to offer. he continue to facilitate citizens fashionable fashion. through the turbulent years of the american revolution as well. desires that not even non importation agreements could stifle. don't take me wrong, here. i'm not accusing karlyn of facilitating open rebellion amongst the patriots by trying to get people to not emulate the british or purchase british goods. i would rather think of carlin as a moral man. he also did his part to see -- and quite literally put on the formal uniform of revolutionary rebellion. in july of 1775, after patrick henry delivered his words give me liberty or give me death, after the second congress in philadelphia, the virginia gives that published george masons -- james parsons entered the tailor shop and place a revolutionary order for the price of one pound, seven shootings and six pants, james parsons now donned a regimental suit. the revolution with karlan's help had begun. thank you so much. (applause) >> the account book. does it also say where he purchased his materials, where he purchased his cloth? is that in the account book? >> there is only one transaction to tell me anything about where he is and where he is purchasing, what factor. it is a man named -- when i count. it is the earliest transactional in the account book. i think it's james todd of york in england. that is the only thing that i could find that is possible that this is just one of carlin's i count keeping books. he may have others that are for that end of his business, importing raw materials. maybe he is getting them locally, i don't know. but this surviving account book is mostly incoming and outgoing based on customers. i would love to know the answer to that question. if you find it, let me know. >> i was thinking that the reason of the very large remnants of boats that have been found and alexandria, and if perhaps the cloth was coming in on some of those. it would be nice to get an account of where -- >> certainly an inevitably it was, but i don't know who he communicated with. who this factor is. >> thank you. >> thank you for your presentation. it was really fascinating. just a couple of questions to sort of round out my whole picture about purchasing of clothes. with somebody like george mason or even one of the workers and town, would they have more than one outfit? with they have several? and then the second question is, what about hygiene at this time of history? >> that is actually -- hygiene is a fun one to answer. the best way that i can answer that question is the past is a foreign country. they do things differently there. there is a great book, if you really want to do a deep dive. it is by kathy brown. it is called foul bodies. she talks a lot about bathing and hygiene. all of these fun questions in that book. it is very virginia centric. i encourage you to get that book. laundry is -- bleaching things out in the sun is a thing. people are taking care of their clothing. people do bathe in this time period contrary to popular mythology. there are a lot of things that we can do to keep ourselves as fresh as we can be and keep our clothing as fresh as we can be as well. that your question about multiple garments. i think it is clear to see in the account book, particularly that when receipt for somebody some of the enslaved men and washington's records. the fairfax records as well. you can see when people are acquiring new sets of close. a lot of it revolves around seasonality. at least four enslaved members of society, you are obligated to clothes slaves. people like washington, you had a variety of different ways. it's plain to see in the account but that you can follow what happens to garments. what garments are repaired, versus replaced. when it happens, when they get new suits of clothes. four other members of society as well, i think that is a value of going straight to -- you can see people are getting a lot of clothes. people do have multiple suits of clothes. that might be because changing clothes probably not like we do today, but it is an option for you. we have a lot of different things to dress for in the 18th century than we do in the 21st. i'm wearing a wool skirt, right now. it is 90 degrees outside. i'm glad i'm wearing that will skirt because we have central air in here and it is freezing. i don't have to think so much about what the climate is when i dress myself in the morning. these people did. again, it passes from different countries. they do things differently. there's 400 other ways i could answer that question, but maybe that is the start. >> i cannot -- in terms of even the size of the wardrobe and what was popular fashioned during those times? >> size of the wardrobe was probably about the same thing. i should also mention that inventories is a fun way to gauge what people had. it really sucks for looking at clothing. inventories are meant to get a glimpse of the work for resale, or paying off your debts. compared to other stuff in your house. clothing is not going to affect that much. used clothing, secondhand clothing will not fetch that much. so we do not seek clothing and inventories, which is a real bummer, so that could have been a great way to answer that question. people were not thinking that way in the 18th century. women were more often getting their clothing from someone called a man shot maker. they are down makers. the way that that clothing was constructed is completely different than how many were having their clothes constructed. drew, stand up. you can stay there. that's my husband. thank you! if he is going to a tailor and he is having clothing made, the taylor will approach him. drew will be his own dress form, but the way that a taylor is going to work out how to construct his finished garment is he is going to take measurements using that strip of paper. he is going to measure arms, and everything. sit down. but a woman, the way women is going to go to a gown maker, she will -- the way that that construction works instead of a strip of paper being placed across areas of measurements, the dressmaker will drape fabric right on the women's body. if you think about it, women's clothes at the time were very very form fitting and some places and extremely huge and other places. the way that you are measured for that clothing is totally totally different. the two reasons why a woman might go to a tailor might be for stays. some men were also -- male tailors were also making women's states that form fitted undergarments. they are also making women's writing habits. they're constructed to look like men's suits, only it is a skirt, not pants. a tyler a taylor would do that as well. >> that was so informative and fun. thank you. >> i try to be fun. >> you talked about the variances and style necessitate it by climate. i'm wondering if the revolution and sense event new nation emerging, did that effect clothing styles at all? would you be able to distinguish patriot from loyalist at some point? >> we have this idea of the home spun movement. that is something i am really trying to deep dive into. i think the homespun movement, trying to show your patriotism by not importing british goods but by wearing clothing made -- was that your question as well? separate question. i will have to be happy to come to that in a moment. i think there is a very short kind of sparked movement to wear clothing constructed from fabric that is made here in the colonies as a way to stick it to the britain. we have home spin balls, things like that. not everyone is able to do that. i think we have in our mind's eye that everybody was running around and things called country clubs or homespun. while it happened i'm not sure it happened to the magnitude that we want to believe that it did. we are patriots. right? in terms of dressing for the season, that is still a factor. we have central air. that is still a factor. again, i feel like there are so many different ways to answer these questions. we are always colonists and then citizens of the new republic. on always kind of looking looking to england first and then to france for fashionable inspiration. a really fun thing happens in fashion after. the creation of the united states. in 1800 you have this prevalence towards the classics. we see women in these beautiful draped gowns and they all look like -- there are other parts of fashionable life that also take that into account, so this is where you see there being reflected in architecture. people have done amazing research papers on how a column on a building reflects the way a woman's gown, drapes her body, the way that she is wearing that fashion and how it all says something about the new republic. in a way, fashion does change after the revolution and there might be a way to put that all in a nice little box. longer than this conversation. another question about domestic manufacture. it kind of depends. the beginning of let's say the beginning of the american revolution, we also have the beginning of the industrial revolution. i think this idea of domestic manufacturing will start kicking off in the 19th century where we have more industry. we are choosing to support ourselves more as a nation. the clothing treat really becomes more industrialized. a 19th century we have more technology in terms of the sewing machine. it's not as fun because everything is ready made. there is a great book already made democracy that talks about this again. more geared towards men's clothing. it is really more with the industrial revolution that we see more of the domestic movement for clothing. i don't know if that answer your question. (inaudible) another problem i want to point out about homespun, is you have to have technology to create cloth in your home, whether it be linen or will, but you also have to have the leisure time. it is an incredible amount of work. there's something like 13 steps between sewing that flaxseed and then wearing the linen. you have to have an incredible amount of leisure time to do that. you also have to have a way of supporting yourself through that process as well. i think that is another factor that gets lost in this conversation. sure, you might know how to do it, do you have the leisure time to do it? you might really want to wear homespun for forever to show your patriotic leanings, but who is doing it? where can you get it? i think that is probably more of a regional conversation then a national one. >> i wanted to ask you, i hope the segue -- when the british soldiers came over they had will. they were wearing their wool outfits. do you know the uniform that was made or what was being made for the continental army? was that wool or was that linen? >> they were also wearing one. well is hot but it is also a great i would rather wear wool than polyester any day. even on a day like this. and 77 or 78, everybody had to wear hunting shirts. this is a limit that is more of what you might see in your mind's eye when you think of the war in the south. men wore this kind of shirt. almost smoke like garments. i think the best (interpreter) having to do with availability of materials how to make those shirts, and also washington really wants everyone to work -- everyone is running around in different kinds of rules. there are will union uniforms. (applause) friday night on american history tv, a look at the american revolution beginning at eight eastern. military historian gregory or wind talks about the challenges that the british army faced in adapting to north american terrain and battle tactics during the revolutionary war. his remarks were at an international conference call hosted by the museum of the american revolution, the military museum and library and richard see bond foundation. watch american history tv friday night and over the weekend on c-span three. >> and now, from alexandria virginia, the closing session from the emerging revolutionary war symposium. a panel of historians summarize their thoughts from the day. they discuss the causes of the american revolution. >> thank you all for coming out today. thank you for hosting in gatsby's tavern, for helping set up and happy hour after this. we are going to try to keep it as close to 4:00 as possible so we can all get our beer we are looking forward to afterwards. this is the

Related Keywords

Jamestown , Highland , United Kingdom , United States , Netherlands , Alexandria , Al Iskandariyah , Egypt , Washington , Williamsburg , Virginia , Mount Vernon , Fairfax County , Togo , France , London , City Of , Connecticut , Britain , Americans , Englishman , French , Dutch , British , Virginians , American , Thomas Fleming , Robert Adam , Charles Lawrence , James Kirk , George Mason , William Carlin Taylor , Peter Wagner , John Carlile , Charles Turner , George Washington , James Todd , Tyler A Taylor , Charles Alexander , William Carlin , James Parsons , John West ,