Fashion History Museum

06/02/2026

https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=262e8d84fd02

An online jigsaw puzzle with 99 pieces.

05/31/2026

https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=1bcdb2443b66

An online jigsaw puzzle with 99 pieces.

05/28/2026

https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=3c3c069191e8

An online jigsaw puzzle with 96 pieces.

05/27/2026

Encore Boutique will be debuting at Stratford Vintage Market this Saturday, May 30 with an array of vintage classics and wearable treasures dating from the 1950s to the 1990s. Encore is the FHM's boutique of unique vintage clothing and accessories sold in support of the museum. The FHM, which was in Cambridge for ten years, is now looking for a new home in Stratford, and while we look, we will be opening Encore Vintage at 41 Market Place this coming July 11. This summer the FHM is also mounting two exhibitions: Vogue Voyages - Fashion on the High Seas 1912 – 1939, on display now until November 8 at Castle Kilbride; and Made in France at Gallery Stratford, an exhibition of French fashions from 1870 to 1970, opening June 20 and on display until October 20.

05/20/2026

Today is the Day! is excited to announce its newest exhibit Vogue Voyages: Fashion on the High Seas Travel Clothes 1912 – 1939. Get on board with a fashion display that manifests the grandeur of travel during the steamship era. View clothing and outfits that made waves. In proud partnership with the Fashion History Museum.

04/12/2026

Gender kerfuffle: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15726259/Museum-accused-rewriting-history-telling-visitors-Victorian-boys-dresses-gender-fluid.html

Let's clear things up:

Until the 15th century infants and toddlers were all referred to as 'girls' - it was another word for 'child'. As children aged, girls were called maidens and boys knaves. The term 'boy' was originally used to refer to a servant. That definition survived amongst early English settlers of the Southern United States who referred to their slaves as 'boys' - calling out 'Garçon' (French for boy) is also a derogatory way to get the attention of a waiter in a restaurant.

So infants and toddlers were essentially gender neutral beings that were clothed identically until the early 20th century. This is for practical reasons - it's easier to change diapers, and with many children being born, the same clothing could be used child after child after child. The fancy dresses worn by infants and toddlers in photographs were their 'best' wear, and it was usually a dress chosen by the mother, which often skewed to her taste, especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when lace and frills were popular in women's fashion, and having your photo taken was a common practice. The child didn't care how it looked as long as they were fed, changed, and loved.

When a boy was 'breeched' (an historical term meaning he began to be put in pants), it meant he was potty trained and had begun his journey to becoming a man. This usually occurred around the age of four. He would learn how to ride a horse astride and partake in sports; his schooling began so as to enable future success in business or he learned the skills needed for farming or trade, as well as to build strength for manual labour and self defense.

It was only in the 1920s that infants and toddlers became more divided by gender - pink and blue became colours commonly used to denote gender in infancy, and boys were upgraded sooner into pants as toddlers, aided by the addition of elastic and dome fasteners, especially after the 'onesie' became common for the baby boom generation during the 1950s.

The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle, County Durham, claimed 'gender fluidity is not a recent development' because boys aged between four and seven wore dresses in the 19th century.

04/04/2026

June Swann (August 2, 1929 - November 21, 2025)

I only found out today that the former keeper (curator) of shoes at the Northampton Museum passed away last November. June Swann was the first curator of footwear at the Northampton Museum where she worked for 38 years before retiring in 1987 to become a freelance shoe historian. June was a pioneer in footwear history research - her book Shoes (1982), was one of the first to relate an accurate history of fashion footwear.

On three occasions June visited the Bata Shoe Museum where I worked as curator (1987 - 1999) - she was always generous with her knowledge and supportive of my work. She was a mentor to me and we got on well - often spending evenings together after the work day had ended (she liked a pint!)

She was an odd bird - a classic old-school academic who kept copious notebooks of research. She was fiercely English, reluctantly appreciating 19th century French shoemaking for its quality, but never forgiving the United States for industrializing shoe manufacturing in the late 19th century, which diminished the tradition of English shoemaking.

The last time I saw her was when she came with a tour of I.C.O.M. (International Community of Museums) members to the Fashion History Museum in 2015, shortly after we had opened. I pulled some of our more interesting shoes for her to study while I gave general tours to everyone else - she was so appreciative of what I had done. Her last words to me as she left the museum to join the rest of the tour praised our efforts "thank-you for founding a real museum". It was the biggest compliment she ever paid.

Jonathan Walford

03/29/2026

We are sad to report the passing of Randy Bryan Bigham. His knowledge of notable Titanic survivor Lady Duff Gordon and her career as the fashion designer Lucile was unparalleled - and fortunately published in his book Lucile: Her Life by Design. The Fashion History Museum is grateful to have become the caretaker of several Lucile garments from Mr. Bigham's collection, as well as his research archives, which will secure the memory of his scholarly work and passion.