What a child should wear in 1712



The Enraged Musician by William Hogarth, 1741

A comment from Kendra on my post on leather stays made me do a search for them on Google books and actually found a few, very few mentions of them in British texts. In 1758 there is a note on poor girl being issued leather stays when they are admitted to an Asylum. I did a search for leather bodice and found a description af a country wench in her leather bodice from 1771 and then, a rather facinating list on the cost of clothes for children in a British charity school in 1712. Girls are then supposed to be provided with a leather bodice with a stomacher. But the whole list is worth a post, I think. Being charity this is what is considered the minimum of clothes a child, aged 7-12 should wear. A quite useful guide for 18^th century re-enactors with children, I think, the quality would be better for a richer child and he or she would have more underwear, but the basics are here. I kept the spelling.

 

An ACCOUNT of the RATES of Cloathing

Poor Children belonging to C H A R I T Y-s C H O O L S

The Charge of Cloathing a BOY

A Yard and half-quarter of Grey Yorkshire Broad Cloth 6 quarters wide, makes a Coat: 3 s.
Making the Coat, with Pewter Buttons and all other Materials: 1 s.
A Wasitcoat of the same Cloth lined: 3 s. 6 d.
A pair of Breeches of Cloth or Leather lined: 2 s. 6 d.
1   Knit Cap, with Tuft and String, of any Colour: 10 d.
1 Band: 2 d.
1 Shirt: 1 s. 6 d.
1 Pair of Woollen Stockings: 8 d.
1 Pair of Shoes: 1 s. and 10 d.
1 Pair of Buckles: 1 d.
1 Pair of Knit or Wash-Leather Gloves: 7 d.
Total: 15 s. and 8 d.

The Charge of Cloathing a GIRL.

3 Yards and half of blue long Ells, about yard wide, at  6d. p. Yard, makes a Gown and Petticoat: 4 s. 8 d.
Making thereof, Strings, Body-lining, and other Materials : 1 s.J
A Coif and Band of Scotch-Cloth with a Border: 9 d.
Ditto of fine Ghenting: 1 s.
A Shift: 1 s. 6 d.

A White, Blue, or Checquer'd Apron: 1 s.

A pair of Leather Bodice and Stomacher: 2 s. 6 d.

1 Pair of Woollen Stockings: 8 d.

1 Pair of Shoes: 1 s. 8 d.

A Pair of Pattens: 8 d..

1 Pair of Buckles: 1 d.

1 Pair of Knit or Wash-Leather Gloves: 7 d.

Total: 16 s. 1 d.

The Graham children by William Hogarth, 1742

I think it is interesting that girl’s costs more and that there are no warm outwear for either sex. The mention of a  leather bodice is interesting as well. I think they are more like stays, even if unboned they would probably add some stiffness and as a gown is listed, the bodice is probably meant more as underwear. I didn’t know what pattens was, but have now learned now that it protective overshoes. I am stumped on the fabrics for the girl’s clothes, though. Anyone who knows what Ells, Scotch-Cloth and Ghenting are? My guess is that Ells is a wool of some sort and the other two are different qualities of linen, but I’m not at all sure.

EDIT: Rae Arnold kindly provided me with answers: "
Scotch-cloth is another term for nettlecloth, which is linen-like, but from nettle, not flax.

Ghenting is a flax linen woven in Ghent.

The only time I’ve heard Ells used is as a measurement (27–45", depending on the country), never as a fabric description, but Googling "long ells fabric" returns results describing it as a light woolen (possibly "peculiar to Devonshire")"