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Daily life

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Life in the 13 American Colonies
Compared to Life Today

Click on one of the images below
to find out what life was like in the days of the 13 Colonies.

Back to the 13 Colonies Article

Graphics courtesy of ArtToday

Social Studies for Kids
copyright 2002-2020
David White

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Life in the 13 American Colonies Compared to Life Today Click on one of the images below to find out what life was like in the days of the 13 Colonies. Back to the 13 Colonies Article Graphics courtesy of ArtToday Social Studies for Kids copyright 2002-2020 David White

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From Williamsburg

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by Linda Baumgarten

In the eighteenth century, children's clothing underwent a gradual evolution from constricting garments patterned after those worn by adults to apparel designed specifically for them. The practice of swaddling infants tightly was gradually discontinued early in the century. Very young children of both sexes wore dresses with close fitting bodices similar to those worn by women.

The bodices, which usually fastened at the back, often had leading strings or bands attached to the shoulders to help parents guide a young child who was learning to walk. Perhaps they also acted as a restraint on a lively youngster. Leading strings were occasionally retained on girls' dresses as a symbol of youthfulness long after their practical functions had been outgrown.

Toddlers sometimes wore padded pudding caps much like modern crash helmets to protect their heads if they fell. Most small girls and many young boys wore stays, especially with dress clothing, since it was believed that stays supported the back and encouraged proper posture. As late as 1771, Williamsburg milliner Catherine Rathell advertised "thin Bone and Packthread Stays for Children of three Months old and upwards." Not all children, particularly those of the laboring classes, were put in stays, however.

A philosophical movement toward less restrictive dress for children occurred during the second half of the eighteenth century, and by 1760 the already well-established fashion was for little boys and girls to wear white dresses called frocks that had sashes at the waist. Late in the 1700s, boys began to wear suits with long trousers rather than knee breeches, a fashion that won favor about twenty years before it was accepted by adult men for dress wear. Throughout the century, the time when a little boy went from skirts to pants, which was called, "breeching," occurred anytime from age three to seven and was symbolic of his first step toward becoming a "little man."
Article written by Linda Baumgarten, Curator of Textiles of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
The article is an excerpt from Eighteenth-Century Clothing at Williamsburg, available from our online catalog.

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colonial williamsburg family vacation packages

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by Linda Baumgarten In the eighteenth century, children's clothing underwent a gradual evolution from constricting garments patterned after those worn by adults to apparel designed specifically for them. The practice of swaddling infants tightly was gradually discontinued early in the century. Very young children of both sexes wore dresses with close fitting bodices similar to those worn by women.

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Daily life for everyone from Noah Webster

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Daily life for everyone from Noah Webster

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Life in the 1770s in Connecticut | Kid's Corner | Discover and Learn | Noah Webster House and West Hartford Historical Society | West Hartford, Connecticut (CT)

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Overview of the Noah Webster House and West Hartford Historical Society plus photos and information on classes, workshops, special events, museum collections, visiting hours, rentals and special programs.

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colonial williamsburg family vacation packages

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Children's activities at the Geddy House

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At the James Geddy House in Colonial Williamsburg, youth interpreters frequently recreate different aspects of the life of colonial children, including education, music, dance, play, and daily chores. They bring the 18th century to life by dressing in period clothing and demonstrating typical activities of children of that period.

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https://noahwebsterhouse.org/colonialfun/

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Regions of the Thirteen Colonies - BrainPOP

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Learn the features that defined the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies, and set the foundation for America!