charles w. bartrum, sweet, orr & company's newburgh factory superintendent, was granted the patent for the design of the overalls pictured here on december 12, 1916. i regard them as the first overalls drafted specifically for women. they were meant for use by the increasing number of women that were employed in the united states factories supplying the allies during world war one, and then our own military at the end of the war. we didn't formally enter the war until the middle of 1917, when our policy of isolationism was broken by german actions against our national security.
i am curious about the design of these overalls with regards to who actually drafted their pattern. in 1917 daniel edward ryan was making claims in the clothing trade journal that he made "the pioneer attempt of designing women's overalls for sweet-orr co., inc.". his oddly worded claim is in the middle of a self-promotional advertisement for an improved draft of women's overalls he was selling to the trade and it makes me wonder if he felt stiffed by sweet-orr on the rights to the patent.
this design of women's overalls is an interesting first attempt, but they were not practical in the context of a factory for obvious reasons. for example, the baggy legs that were meant to approximate a skirt would be a liability even in today's factories (not that there are many left here in the united states...). it seems like overalls for women weren't reconsidered until world war two. check out the post at unsung sewing patterns about how that war affected their design and affected what women would feel comfortable wearing in the future.
