1840s Tail Suit from a LACMA Exhibit
These images were taken by my wife Sheila at the splendid Los Angeles County Museum of Art exhibit titled "Fashioning Fashion: 1700 - 1915" in November of 2010. The exhibit is scheduled to run through March of 2011.
This is a typical tail suit from just before the period that is the primary focus of my website - but since men are notoriously slow to cast aside unfashionable garments that still fit, this is, with the exception of the shirt collar and tie (which seems to be an area where men did keep up with the times) what you might see on an older, more conservative man until the early '60s.
It is expertly tailored brown wool with brass buttons and summer weight cotton trousers. The vest is, as was typical up until the early '60s, quite colorful.
It is worn with a top hat which is typical of most town wear in the period. Straw top hats are also seen in this period. In the countryside and out west, lower brimmed more practical hats were more typical.
You can click on any image for a larger view.
