Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - January 1864 Godey's Lady's Book

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - January 1864 Godey's Lady's Book

Dinner Dress
Walnut-colored silk dress, trimmed with a fluted ruffle on the edge of the skirt. Above the ruffle is a fancy trimming, formed of white lace insertion and black velvet.

Dinner Dress

An apple-green silk trimmed with one deep box-plaited ruffle. Above it is a trimming formed of ribbon or velvet. The trimming on the corsage is of the same style, but reduced in size.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1863 Godey's Lady's Book

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1863 Godey's Lady's Book

Fashionable Dresses

Fig 1 - Mode-colored poplin, with a mode silk flounce fourteen inches wide. Corsage pointed behind and before. Sleeves open from the elbow. Black velvet bows down the front of the dress.

Fig 2 - La Valliere brown poplin dress, trimmed with a black pinked flounce, headed by a chicore ruche. This flounce extends up the front in zigzags. The sleeves are trimmed to match the skirt.

Fig 3 - Dress of dahlia-colored silk. The skirt is trimmed with eight or nine double chicore ruches, made of black silk, extending to within a quarter of a yard of the bottom of the dress. These ruches are surrounded by two very narrow flounces like the dress. Low corsage, with Marie Antoinette fichu of the same material as the dress.

Fig 4 - Dress of mode-colored reps, with revers on the skirt, trimmed round with quilled ribbon. The openings between the revers are filled in with narrow ruffles either of mode or black silk. A plaiting of reps is on the bottom of the skirt. The plastron of the body and the quantlet on the sleeves are trimmed with a quilled ribbon.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1861 Peterson's Magazine

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1861 Peterson's Magazine

The Hildegorde - This new style of dress is made of slate-colored silk. The body and skirt is cut in one, like the Polonaise or Imperatrice: but instead of the skirt opening in front like the last named dresses, it opens slantwise from the waist down to nearly the bottom of the skirt, where it again turns toward the front. The body closes up to the throat, and has a lappel on one side only. The sleeves are full, with a jockey at the top and a cuff at the bottom. The dress is trimmed with a band of velvet, and a puffing of silk at the edge, of the color of the dress.

The Highland - This charming dress, suitable for the country, is of plain delaine. In the engraving the skirt is fastened up with "pages:" but can also be made to fasten up on the inside by placing a few buttons around the skirt, and looping them up with tape strings depending from the waist. With this dress a Balmoral skirt is indispensable. Some ladies make the petticoat of plain gray flannel, and ornament it with rows of red cloth or flannel. A loose jacket is worn over a linen chemisette in place of a tight body. The jacket is ornamented with briad and buttons, and opens at the throat. Empress hat and plume.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - September 1865 Peterson's Magazine

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - September 1865 Peterson's Magazine

Walking Dress of White Alpaca - The petticoat, skirt, and basque are trimmed with golden brown silk.

Walking Dress of Nankeen-Colored Foulard - trimmed with gimp, and looped up over a petticoat of the same material.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1862 Peterson's Magazine

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1862 Peterson's Magazine

The Mariana or Polonaise Dress of Green Silk, with one rather wide ruffle at the bottom. The front is ornamented with ruches of silk, and another ruche which extends down the back to the waist, passes over the shoulders down the front on each side of the en-tablier trimming, and above the flounce. Pagoda sleeves open far up the arm, and trimmed to correspond with the skirt. White silk bonnet, ornamented with a green bird of Paradise.

Lucia Dress of French Gray Silk - There is a quilling of black silk extending from the shoulders down the sides of the front, and around the bottom of the dress. The front of the dress and sleeves are cut out in the shape seen in the engravings and bound with black silk.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1860 Peterson's Magazine

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1860 Peterson's Magazine

The St. Cloud
Dress of chene silk. The body is open in front, with lappels like a coat. Underneath is a fine muslin chemisette. The skirt is ornamented with a band of black velvet and a row of buttons, from the waist diagonally down the skirt. Sleeves rather full, put on bands with cuffs and jockeys trimmed with velvet and buttons.

The Chambord
Dress of lavender-colored silk. The body is made open in front, and like the sleeves, is trimmed with wide facings of lavender-colored velvet. Bows made of the silk like the dress are placed on the skirt, sleeves, and body.

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1860 Peterson's Magazine

Civil War Era Ladies' Dresses - March 1860 Peterson's Magazine

The Victoria
This dress is of gray silk, trimmed around the bottom with wide, black velvet ribbon. A belt in the Swiss style is ornamented with two loops and long ends of black velvet. A pocket on the left side, and the sleeves are also trimmed with velvet. Plain black velvet buttons on the body, and tassel buttons on the sleeves. Head-dress of black lace and pink roses.

New Style of High Body
called the "Sheaf." Dress of black silk, with Pompadour bouquets in rich colors over it. The body is ornamented with four darts of green velvet, two on each side of the row of green buttons which fastens it up the front. Belt of green velvet. Sleeve nearly tight, with a jockey.

Civil War Era Fashions - Ladies' Dresses - Museum Originals

Civil War Era Fashions - Ladies' Dresses

A selection of museum originals -

Blue Silk Day Dress - Whitaker Auction

1860 Purple Day Dress - Whitaker Auction
This looks to have the yoked bodice. No mention of type of fabric.

1860s Plaid Silk Taffeta Dress - Whitaker Auction
Close-up Picture
Brown and white plaid with the square dinner neckline.

1865 Blue Silk Taffeta Dress - Whitaker Auction
With the square dinner neckline.

1860's Brown Figured Silk Day Dress - Whitaker Auction
Very nice inside-out photo on 2nd page.

Purple Silk Day Dress - Whitaker Auction


I welcome your comments about dating, fabrics, construction methods, etc.