Fashion in the Colonial Era
by Amanda Peterson

As you can probably imagine, fashion in the 1600s was very different than modern times. Petticoats and gloves have been replaced by miniskirts and torn jeans. Some styles are still popular, though, such as the high heeled shoe. However, during the colonial era, it was the men who wore these most often and not the women.

Let’s start from square one. Common underwear was similar to what we know now as long underwear. It was linen, long sleeved, and loose fitting. For women, this was called a smock; for men, it was a shirt. Its length made it easy to tuck into petticoats or breaches.

Aprons were universally worn to protect clothes from dirtying. Women’s aprons, often made from linen or wool, were about the same length as their petticoats, while men – especially blacksmiths or carpenters – wore them according to their occupation.

Everyone had something tied around their neck, whether it was ruffled or flat. Lace or linen collars were the most popular garment, though some women wore a kerchief (similar to a handkerchief). On their heads, men wore felt hats or woolen caps to shade their faces from the hot sun. Women placed linen coifs over their hair once it had been swept up in a fancy hairdo. Over the caps were felt hats.

Cotton was forbidden in England and France for most of this century; however, America used it to make cheap clothing for the lower classes. Wool was great for the poor, as it was cheaper and warmer. Linen was popular in the gentry for underclothing; silk was for outer garments, also available exclusively to the higher classes.

Children’s clothing was, most often, blue, gray, red, green, yellow, or brown, and commonly made from wool or linen (depending on their class). Toddlers had leading strings, which were sewn to the shoulders of their gowns, to prevent them from falling once they started walking. Babies wore puddings, which protected their forehead, and biggins, which kept their heads warm.



Both genders wore gowns with long sleeves and skirts until, at four, boys started to come into their more masculine side by dressing in long-sleeved jackets called doublets. Finally, around six or seven, girls started dressing like their older counterparts, as did boys. A special event occurred around this time for males – being “breeched” meant taking the step from wearing a gown to wearing breeches, and from spending more time with his mother to working with his father.

Ankle-length dresses were popular for women of this time. Underneath, they wore stays or corsets, which squeezed their body into the right shape. Besides defining the waist, it also supported the breasts. In the 1700s, these garments were essential for women of all ages. A flat piece of wood, called a busk, was sometimes placed in the center front of the stay. However, this fashion piece was soon discovered to have health defects, such as improper digestion and deformed internal organs.




Over the stays, females wore a waistcoast. These were, essentially, jackets of wool or canvas, similar to the men’s doublets. The legs were covered by one or two petticoats, which were often made of wool, too. These protected their legs, especially when they were cooking, as wool took a long time to burn in the event that it caught on fire.

Wigs were very popular amongst the men of this era. Besides being fashionable, these head garments helped distinguish between classes. Professionals – such as lawyers – had gray wigs, while tradesmen wore theirs in brown. Judges, military officers, and other formal businessman, had white.



The word “macaroni” was invented at this time to describe ultra-fashionable young men. The fashion sense of such males was usually flamboyant and excessive, including tight shirts, short waistcoats, and huge buttons, along with other elaborate details. Walking sticks or swords often accompanied these boys.

In many pictures, pilgrims were depicted as sad, solemn men and women, dressed always in black. Contrary to popular belief, black was rarely worn by these people – formal clothing was almost always black. However, it was not easy to dye garments this dark color, so it was worn only on special occasions. Everyday clothes were, most often, colors such as yellow, blue, red, gray, white, and brown.



There was also a very particular way to get dressed if you were a woman. Knee socks were bound on, first, with tapes or buckles; this was followed by the shoes. Calf-length chemise came next, and then a modesty skirt. The stay, pocket, panier, petticoats, stomacher, and robe proceeded. Lastly, the caps were set into place.

Of course, just as today, fads changed as seasons came and went, and new materials drew in and out of style. However, with much more available to us today, more extravagant outfits are being made all the time. Also, without such formal standards to dress by, we can individualize ourselves in the way we dress.

Music & Dance in the Colonial Era
by Amanda Peterson

As you can probably guess, the dances and music of the colonial era are quite different than the upbeat tempos and smooth beats we experience today. Some of the instruments used, however, are still in manufacture today, and are played by a wide range of people of all ages. Just like today, songs and dances gained or lost popularity as fads changed.

Colonial music of the time was both written and oral. Songwriters took the largely recognized tune of an existing song and applied new words to it. Tunes, however, were not only for entertainment – they were present in military marches and religious ceremonies, too. They also appeared in musical theater (most often ballad operas), which not only entertained but encouraged families to spend time together.

With flutes second in line for popularity, violins were played by, virtually, everyone. Both instruments were imported from around the world, made from a variety of different materials. Despite this, certain instruments and types of music were reserved to a certain class, gender, or ethnic background. Women, for example, were limited to very few instruments; slaves often used their voices as a substitute.

Dancing was another favorite pastime of the colonists. Though usually accompanied by a single violin, other instruments sometimes joined in to create a more powerful beat. Dancing, generally, was a public display of skill. Professionals were highly admired. However, this practice was not only for entertainment – it was also for the solidification of friendships, courtships, and business deals.

A wide range of dances graced the floors, from the English country dance to jigs to the chief ceremonial dance of the menuet ordinare, or ballroom minuet. This French dance is a sequence of complicated steps and floor patterns. It can either be a singular dance or a couplet.

Dancing teachers were very profitable. They offered both public classes and private lessons, and were constantly creating new steps and tunes to keep their students – who ranged from children to adults – interested.

Despite being embraced by New England’s devout Congregationalists, singing in the church was not accepted by all. Others adopted this practice, but discouraged secular music, as the Puritans did. Religious music was classless, and was a very large part of worship. Instruments, however, were not generally present, including the organ, which is now popularly played in worship halls. This was not only due to expenses, but also because the instrument was difficult to play. These piano-like objects were found more often in homes than in churches.

Slaves were encouraged by their owners to sing while they worked. The logic behind this was that it improved the moods of the workers, and that their efficiency would increase. After hours, however, everyone gathered together to perform more extravagant ceremonies, both religious and secular. Call-and-response was very popular within these societies, brought from their homeland of Africa.

When they were allowed to, slaves played instruments such as banjos, flutes, notched gourds, and, most popularly, drums. However, this was often swapped out with clapping and foot stomping. Dancing, too, was common at these gatherings to promote spirituality and joy.

Compared to modern styles, these musical habits were very different. Most dancers of the time did not dance without inhibition, but with a formal and practiced step that gained them popularity and, in some cases, a profit. As you can see, our culture has evolved greatly.

Education in the Colonial Era
by Amanda Peterson

Back in the colonial era, kids of all ages shared a single classroom. This was due to the fact that most towns had only one building and one teacher, if at all. So many laws and rules surrounded this establishment; schools varied from public to an early version of private. School has changed a lot since the 1700s.

The classroom was warmed by a stove. To keep it running, children had to bring logs. If they forgot, they would have to sit in the coldest part of the classroom, which was segregated based on gender. Lessons were learned through repetition, as well as tongue twisters, spelling bees, and homework.

Quills, made from the feathers of a wild turkey or goose, were common, as was chalk. Boys in higher education sometimes used a slate pencil on a slate rock; their writing could be erased when they were done.

School began at 7 am and lasted from Monday to Saturday. Many people, especially the Puritans, valued education, both for religious study and economic success. Boys, however, were prepared differently than girls. They learned to read, write, and do basic arithmetic, while girls were even less likely to be sent to school. Instead, they stayed home and focused on “home economics.”

Poor families, as well as those who lived in rural areas, often could not send their children to school. Those who could taught their offspring, though most did not know how to read or write. Instead, boys learned how to do the father’s tasks: manning the farm and handling a gun. Girls learned skills such as weaving, sewing, and food preparation. Many poor and middle white children in the south, as well as all black children, never went to school. Rich children, on the other hand, had several options, two of which were private school or private tutor.

The earliest education law was enacted in about 1642. Massachusetts Bay county officials threatened to apprentice children if they were not receiving a proper education. Four years later, Virginia passed a similar law. In 1647, the Massachusetts colony reinforced their education law by charging those who did not follow through a 20 shilling fee (about two dollars). Some sort of religious instruction in a Catholic church was also required at least once a week.

This law also set the cornerstone for setting up a public school system. It required that every town with fifty families have an elementary school, and one hundred earned them a grammar school. In practice, however, it was difficult to keep these buildings open and staffed. Somehow, they managed, and pulled through to modern times.

As mentioned above, apprenticeships were not uncommon. This took place when a child’s parent put him in another home to learn the trick of the trade from the master of a specific skill. The boys promised to study and work hard, and be well-behaved in return. Girls were “bound-out” as household servants or to learn skills such as needlework and cooking.

Dame schools were another option. These took place in a home, often that of a widow. While she worked, her students, usually females, learned reading, writing, and rudiments. Church schools, too, were operated inside the home of a bishop. The minister taught the alphabet, spelling, writing, and arithmetic. However, fees had to be paid in order to be a part of this, so it was reserved almost exclusively for the elite.

Elementary school in the colonies was taught using a hornbook. Though this was not an actual book, it taught the alphabet, vocabulary, prayers, and Roman Numerals. The hornbook itself was a piece of wood, usually about five inches long with a handle, covered in a piece of paper. The handle was strung through so it could be carried on the shoulder or around the neck. Both boys and girls attended elementary school depending on their individual circumstances.

Once the hornbook was fully learned, it was time for graduation. Girls often went to work at their homes; boys had the option of moving on. Latin Grammar Schools, as they were called, were early versions of college prep, where teachers – often ministers – taught Latin, Greek, memorization, and discipline, among other things.

These establishments were rare outside of major towns such as Boston and Philadelphia. The students learned from the New England Primer, which had a great variety of Christian teachings, from questions about God to prayers and rhymes. However, as these schools cost money, those who were richer had the privilege of attending. Graduation occurred when the New England Primer was memorized. At this point, most skipped out on college to go and work.

All colleges of the time were, of course, for white men only. Dartmouth, however, was originally a Native American establishment. Most boys who continued onto higher education entered universities at fourteen or fifteen years of age. The college faculty was generally small, including one or two professors and several tutors. All students studied the same course for three to four years. Common subjects were history, languages, theology, and mathematics. Science did not become popular until around the 18th century, and law at the turn of the 19th. Some of the colleges of the time were Harvard (1638), William and Mary (1693), Yale (1701), Princeton (1746), and Columbia (1754).

As you can see, the colonial era offered a wide range of academic options. Despite not being available to all citizens, they did well in educating those who could go. They also set the foundation for what is today the basis of our society.

Sports & Games in the Colonial Era
by Amanda Peterson

Just like today, settlers of the pre-American colonies enjoyed sports and games. Cards were quite popular, as was hunting, fishing, and animal fights, which are now illegal. Sports, however, were mostly confined to males, while women stood at the sidelines as spectators.

Some popular games included Blind Man’s Bluff, where players spin around a blindfolded person and stand in a circle, waiting for him to catch one of them; Hunt the Slipper, in which players sit in a circle and secretly pass around a slipper (or other object) for the hunter to find; and Ring Taw, a marble game in which the object is to throw your marble and hit another.

Americans enjoyed marbles, billards (for the wealthy), gambling, and card games, such as cribbage, poker (called “put”), king of queens, and ace of hearts. Ninepins, an early version of bowling, and bowls, similar to boccie ball, were invented, too.

Newspapers advertised a variety of children’s toys. Puzzles, toy watches, baby dolls, and tea sets were among them. Though most children’s playthings were homemade, they were occasionally treated to a store-bought item. Historian Jane Caron said that “the favorite toy of little girls” was a tea set, second only to dolls.

Modern baseball may have its roots within colonial culture. Ball games were very popular. An early version of the Little League had boys with sticks hitting and catching balls; George Washington, later the first President of the newly formed United States, was reported to have “relaxed by playing catch with his staff.” Continental soldiers, too, passed time by tossing about a ball, often “walking miles to find a level playing field.”

Despite hunting being reserved for the gentry back in England, colonists embraced it. The woods were full of animals and, in most cases, supper on the table was dependent on the day’s catch. Bloody fights, such as between dogs, roosters, and rats, were spectator activities. This was eventually outlawed and still remains illegal today. Wrestling, target practice, and war games were also common. This allowed citizens to show off their skills and to train for future battles.

As you can see, much of the games and sports we know today were, in essence, appreciated even back then. With just a little bit of a peek into the past, you can see how those early days shaped the culture that encompasses America today.

Marriage in the Colonial Era
by Amanda Peterson

As is today, different regions, religions, and cultural groups followed different traditions for the practice of marriage. Some preferred to be officiated within a church, while others were content performing the ceremony in their own home. Groups in the south danced and celebrated, while the more reserved New Englanders frowned upon excessive partying.

The Quakers held weddings within their local meetinghouses. They allowed couples to marry themselves without the presence of a clergyman. The Anglicans in the south made public marriage announcements in the church called banns, which they would use to notify family and friends of the upcoming union. These may have developed into what we know today as a marriage license, which started to become popular in the late 17th century.

Southerners usually held the party within their own homes, while Northerners had a more civil ceremony. While people in Georgia and the Carolinas danced, drank, listened to music, and toasted true love, their New England counterparts stood in a church before a magistrate.

A marriage was more of a business transaction of dowry and land than a sacred union between two lovebirds. The poorer the family, however, the less this mattered. Since certain families did not own land, they allowed their children to marry for love. The parents had the power to veto their son’s choice in a bride, however. Younger siblings were sometimes prevented from marrying until their older brothers had taken a bride or their sisters had been given away.

There were many laws surrounding a marriage. Failing to provide, adultery, or desertion were punishable in court. Physical abuse of wives was outlawed in many of the colonies. In 1641, Massachusetts limited beatings “unless it be in his own defense upon her assault.” This had not been a protective right in England, and wives across the country rejoiced.

Though the English limited marriage termination to the wealthy, divorces were granted in extreme conditions in the colonies, such as desertion. A women, as will be discussed later in this essay, needed the constant support of a husband in order to run a household. Many colonies did not allow the annulment of the union, though they allowed separation.

Women did not legally own anything, not even their own children. They had to obey their husbands, who also controlled their possessions.

For early 17th century women, twenty to twenty three years was the acceptable time to marry. If a girl was still single at twenty-five, it was considered a humiliation. After marriage, about twenty years were spent bearing and raising children – the average family size being around six or seven, as many couples lost at least one child and 50% of women died in childbirth or post-birth complications.

Widows had many more rights than a married woman. They could manage inherited land, businesses, or work outside the home. Single, women, too, shared rights such as contract making, the power to sue or be sued, and own, buy, or sell property. However, widows were pushed to get married quickly, as a woman needed a husband to provide. Sometimes remarriage occurred in a matter of weeks. In fact, women were considered dead once they married – they became one with their husband. All of a women’s property went straight to her husband, even her personal objects, such as jewelry or clothing. At the passing of their spouse, women were entitled to 1/3 of their combined belongings.

Women were not given much respect or rights back in the colonial era. However, as time has passed, they have gained so much more importance – the right to vote, the right to divorce, and even the right to marry each other. Today, a wife is no longer the property of her husband; she is a free person.

Medicine and Diseases in the Colonial Era

by Amanda Peterson

Luckily, medicine has come a long way. Surely, had colonial treatments survived to modern times, so many more lives would be lost, as they were, mostly, very basic and even harmful. In this essay, I’ll briefly cover some of the epidemics of the time, and even explain the connection between barbers and surgeons.

The first few years of settlement in the English colonies were harsh. During that period, more than 80% of Virginia’s population died. During the first winter, almost half of Massachusetts was wiped out. This is not only due to the lack of well-built houses, but also because public health was, virtually, unheard of. Trash was not collected, as it is now, and became a breeding ground for disease.

Most illnesses were treated at home, either by family or with the help of neighbors. Hospitals were nonexistent, as were care homes and other clinics. Doctors, if there were even any in the town, were not professionally trained. Diagnosis was made up mostly of guesswork.

Despite being known best for cutting hair, barbers did more than that. They were allowed, essentially, to go as far as pulling teeth and removing gallstones. Without anesthesia, of course. According to mnwelldir.org, Minnesota’s International Wellness Directory, both barbers and surgeons had the infamous red and white poles outside their places of business. Speaking of doing someone else’s job, apothecaries, which were similar to present day drugstores, also performed dentistry.

Surgery was not very popular, at least until about 1685. In fact, the Catholic Church even forbade the practice. However, in 1810 John Adams’ daughter, Abigail, was diagnosed with breast cancer. The only cure at the time was going through surgery – more specifically, a mastectomy. After surviving this, however, she suffered greatly from the lack of anesthesia. The cancer continued to spread, and she died in 1813.

One major cure to illness was bloodletting, or bleeding. A knife or, on occasion, leeches, were used to drain the “bad blood” from the patient. However, this often hurt the person more and led to their untimely death. A physician or a barber could perform this procedure. George Washington reportedly bled to death during this process.

Midwives became popular around this time, due to lack of functioning public (or private) hospitals. However, this came with a downside – women who performed in-home births were at constant risk of being accused of witchcraft, due to their extensive knowledge of herbal remedies. Arsenic-rich tonics and snakeroot, both of which are potentially harmful to human health, were two popular cures to any number of diseases.

Though malaria, hookworms, beriberi, thyphoid, and dysentery were the norm, there were also wide-spread epidemics that wiped out many people. Yellow fever, for one, appeared first in Philadelphia in 1668. This sickness is transmitted by mosquitos. Smallpox, on the other hand, is spread by physical contact. Prevention was attempted by isolation and inoculation. About a month after this outbreak reached Boston, physician Zabdiel Boylston introduced the vaccination, which was successful on his young son and two of his slaves.

As you can see, medicine has come very, very far as America has progressed. Bloodletting, supposed witchcraft, America’s first inoculation, and surgeries lacking anesthesia – this is our past and, luckily, not our future. By continuing to do research, the scientific community will one day discover new procedures and cures that make modern day medicine look prehistoric.

Cuisine of the Colonial Era

by Amanda Peterson

Back in pre-Revolutionary colonial times, settlers had to rely on in-season fruits, vegetables, and game. Without refrigerators or other modern preservation methods, most excess food was either sold or consumed quickly. Though there was not a typical colonial meal, as availability of certain goods varied from region to region, there was a set order of meals. First was breakfast, which was taken small and early by the poor, as they had to get up early to work, and later and larger by the rich. Dinner, served in the early afternoon in the hall or the common room, was the biggest and longest meal of the day for all classes. Last came supper, which, in certain parts of the country, consisted of leftovers.

Some farms had a breakfast of porridge, washed down with beer or cider. In towns, citizens drank the same things, but had cornmeal mush and molasses instead. As time went on, this meal got more extravagant: in the 19th century, it could consist of tea or chocolate, wafers, muffins, and toast, set next to a butter dish and knife. In the south, cold turkey and cider were popular.

The size of breakfast was in direct correspondence to how wealthy the family was. The poor rose earlier to get to work while the rich slept in. Pastries and fruit pies joined the menus in the Northeast, while the Middle Colonies adopted such things as Dutch sweetcakes, which were fried in deep fat, and scrapple, a cornmeal and headcheese dish. Many of the higher-class citizens had hired chefs.

By the 18th century, supper, especially in the south, was brief and light. Leftovers or gruel, a mixture of oats, corn, and other meals, could be found on the table.

Since the English colonies were largely unexplored, an abundance of native animals thronged the woods. Unlike its motherland of England, which only allowed the wealthy to hunt, many pre-American families’ lives relied solely on what they could catch. Popular game included birds, raccoons, squirrels, venison (available only to the higher classes in England), and opossum. Fishing, too, become popular, especially along the Eastern seaboard. Cod, clams, crabs, and salmon were common, with the poorer settlers relying mostly on oysters, which were abundant.

Regionally, even the subject of eating differed. The New England colonies saw the act as practical, and would not often stuff themselves full. The only occasion on which they would do so, in fact, were funerals, where copious amounts of food and alcohol were consumed. Even children of the time could drink beers, as it was thought to be healthier than water. Baked beans and pease porridge were quite a common dish, along with a coarse, dark bread. Boiled vegetables and meat were cooked together and without seasoning, prepared unlike the other colonies.

In Virginia, dinners were very important social events. Roast beef, oysters, and geese were particular favorites among the aristocrats, and the wealthy would complain at the absence of meat. This region was the only place in North America where haute cuisine, or food served in small portions over many courses, appeared before the 19th century. This, along with the colonists’ taste for spicier foods, may have been influenced by immigrants, especially from places such as India and France. Frying, simmering, and roasting were popular amongst the Virginians, and cooking methods of the higher-up tended to vary greatly. Their poorer counterparts, however, were stuck with boiled and fried foods.

In the Delaware Valley and Mid-Atlantic regions, which were made up mainly of Quakers, food was plain and simple. As in New England, moderate consumption, both of food and alcohol, was encouraged. Overeating was punished simply by public self-criticism. The strictest of the Quakers avoided tea and meat, while the rest swore off butter. This may have been because they refused to eat foods “tainted by sin,” which included disputed English goods. Unlike other colonies, the entire household, including children and servants, dined together. Most food was boiled, from apple dumplings to pop-robbins, or balls of flour-and-egg batter boiled in milk. Scrapple, a pot pudding made of meat scraps and grain, became a popular dish for many generations.

The frontier and the highlands of the north and south, which were populated mainly by Scots-Irish and those from northern Britain, were called the backcountry. Diet consisted heavily on a mush made from soured milk and boiled grains. Charles Woodmason, an Anglican missionary who spent time in this area, described these people as dependents “wholly on butter, milk, clabber, and what in England is given to the hogs.” Oatmeal made from corn, now known as grits in the South, was popular, as were early versions of pancakes. Food was eaten from wooden trenchers with one of a variety of utensils, including a two-tined fork and a large spoon.

In many places, British cuisine, familiar to many, was preferred, especially over French ways. In fact, many cookbooks made degrading remarks about this type of food. This distaste went on until the American Revolution, when the French became allies instead of enemies. Though it was still not widely accepted, certain regions adopted this cooking style with open arms.

Just like today, the effects of overhunting were crippling. The hunting of buffalo, an important source of protein leading up to this point, was ceased by roughly 1770. Despite the booming seafood market, post-Revolutionary merchants found that the ships docks and navy units deployed in their bays had scared away – if not destroyed – much of the lobster and cod supply. After the Revolution, though, Scots-Irish, among others, were immigrating cattle to the United States, thus repopulating the hunting supply of certain animals.

Sheep were an important part of the colonial lifestyle. Wool was used, as it is today, to be spun into yarn and, later, made into clothing. Many realized, however, that when the sheep reached a certain age, or when they stopped producing enough wool, they could be used as mutton. However, during the Revolution, mutton was no longer popular, as sheep had to be harvested for wool to make uniforms for the soldiers. In fact, Virginia even banned the consumption of this meat except in times of extreme necessity.

After the American Revolution, major dietary changes occurred. Coffee replaced tea as the preferred drink, and whiskey was being more and more popular. The first corn grown in Kentucky was, in fact, for the production of this alcohol. With the arrival of cattle, butter was more enjoyed than pork fat.

The British had a huge effect on the Americans in the way of cuisine. Did you know apple pies even originated from the Quakers? Aided by such a profound influence, along with the cultural inspirations our ancestors drew from other immigrants, an American way of cooking, baking, and even eating, was established.