-
Australian dress register ID:
186 -
Owner:
Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery and Museum -
Date range:
1870 - 1880 -
Place of origin:
Sawtell, New South Wales, Australia -
Gender:
Female
Object information
Significance statement
This garment is significant as it is part of 100 piece collection of clothes that belonged to the Bayldon family who were important members of Coffs Harbour society from 1870 to the present day.
The Bayldons were a very important family in the history of the Sawtell and Toormina region of New South Wales, just South of Coffs Harbour and this is remembered even today. When the local council established a new housing estate near Sawtell it was called Bayldon in William Bayldon's memory but in later years it was incorporated into Toormina. As well as this a local primary school in Toormina is called the William Bayldon Public School.
The size of the collection also makes it significant, with well over 100 pieces covering underwear, skirt, blouses, jackets, hats, scarves, and accessories. It is rare to have so many garments belonging to one family and to be in such good condition.
This dress is the only one in the collection which is accompanied by documentation showing an original wearer. Annie Amy (born 1841) was photographed wearing this dress some time in the 1870s. It is thought that this dress could be her wedding dress from her first marriage. Annie later married Hurtle Fisher who was a significant figure in the late 19th century and became known as the "Father of Victorian Thoroughbreds".
Another significant point is that the collection has been handed down through the generations. Cheryl Dal Pozzo, who donated the items to the Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery and Museum, inherited the clothes from her aunt Nancy and she inherited the clothes from her grandmother, who had collected them from her sisters.
As well as this continuous chain of ownership there is documentation of family members from many generations enjoying some of the dresses in the collection. There is photo of my great great aunt Annie, my aunt Nancy, my cousin Beryl and my niece Megan wearing this outfit. Author: Cheryl Dal Pozzo, 8th December 2009.
Description
Three piece outfit in blue grey striped fabric with blue silk fringing. It consists of a skirt, a jacket and a bustle cover.
The waist length jacket has long sleeves.. There are blue silk fabric bows on the sleeves and over the bustle waistband and blue silk fringing on the front passing over the shoulder and forming a deep V at the centre back waist. There is lace standing out from the front opening of the jacket at the neck.
The skirt has a left side opening with the skirt straight to the band at the front but gathered across the back. There is a cotton tape at the waist extending to form ties. The lower skirt is very full. There is a deep inverted pleat across the area to be covered by the bustle.
The bustle is in two layers with the upper one being shorter and shaped to two points while the under layer has a curved outer edge. The two layers are slightly eased to fit a narrow band that overlaps at the front. There is blue fringing all around the two layers of the bustle cover
History and Provenance
Births, deaths, marriages, children or family information
Transcripts of the death certificates of Elizabeth Bayldon (1899), William Bayldon (1900), Mary Grace Bayldon (1925) and E.K.V. Bayldon (1941)
Eliza Matilda Bayldon nee Leamon (1819? - 1899)
William Edward Bayldon (1818-1900)
Annie Amy Fisher nee Bayldon (1841-1921)
Charles William Edward Bayldon (1843?-??)
Mary Grace Bayldon (1846?-1925)
John Louis Phillip Bayldon (1847?-??)
James Joseph Bayldon (1850-??)
Beatrice Marx nee Bayldon (1851-??)
Lavinia Hennings nee Bayldon (1851-??)
Elizabeth Catherine Valentine (1853?-1941)
Emily Whaites nee Bayldon (1855-1943)
Do you have any stories or community information associated with this?
Eliza and William Bayldon's children were: Annie Amy, Charles William, Mary Grace, Jonothan Louis, James Joseph, Beatrice & Lavinia (twins), Eliza Catherine and Emily.
By 1858 William decided to move his family to a 100 acre farm at Ulmarra near Grafton where he raised cattle and high quality stock horses. In 1864 he moved his family with their possessions, including one of the region's first pianos, to land just below Boat Harbour (now Bellingen). William was a JP in the early 1870s.
At some point after 1870, following a series of attacks on his property by local Indigenous people, William, Eliza and some of the children (now adults) moved back to Sydney.
An area near Sawtell was named "Bayldon" in his memory and the local primary school is called the William Bayldon Public School.
Their youngest daughter Emily did her nurses training at the Lucy Osborne Nightingale Hospital in Sydney, but on the 24th February 1885 she married a William John Whaites, a widower and a shipping pilot, who had one young son. William was given a post on the Nambucca River and Emily's nurses training would have been of help to her husband and the people of the Nambucca, as in his role of pilot William was called on by people in need of medical and dental assistance. Emily and William had four sons and one daughter all born on the Nambucca.
How does this garment relate to the wider historical context?
This dress was worn by Annie Amy Fisher nee Bayldon (1841-1921) some time in the 1870s. It is thought that it could be her wedding dress. Other dresses in this collection belonged to her mother Eliza Bayldon (died in 1899) or her sisters Mary Grace (died in 1925), Beatrice, Lavinia, Eliza Catherine Valentine (died in 1941), or Emily (1855-1943).
Annie's mother first came to South Australia in 1838 with her first husband. She married William Bayldon in 1840 in Adelaide, where their first daughter Annie was born in 1841. William then sold his business and moved his family back to England.
For many reasons, including the economic boom precipitated by the discovery of gold in Australia, William and Eliza decided to move back in the hope of a better life for their family. While they were in Sydney their ninth child Emily was born in 1855.
When Whaites retired he and Emily moved to Burwood and following his death Emily cared for her older sister Eliza. It is probable that it was during this period that Emily acquired clothes that once belonged to her mother and sisters as well as other items of family memorabilia.
Where did this information come from?
Cheryl dal Pozzo, descendant of Annie Bayldon.
This garment has been exhibited
This garment was exhibited along with the others in the collection by the Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery and Museum. Many descendants of the original owners attended the exhibition.
Place of origin:
Sawtell, New South Wales, Australia
Owned by:
Annie Bayldon (1870?)
Emily Whaites nee Bayldon (from unknown date until 1943)
Nancy Sewell, Whaites' granddaughter (from 1943)
Cheryl Dal Pozzo, Sewell's niece
Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery and Museum
Worn by:
Annie Bayldon, eldest daughter of Eliza and William Bayldon.
Occasion(s):
May be wedding outfit.
Place:
Mid-North Coast New South Wales
Made for:
Annie Bayldon
Trimmings / Decoration
Blue silk fringing all around the two edges of the bustle cover and front and back of jacket, ending with a deep V at the back waist.
Blue silk bows at shoulder and above wrist on sleeves, and on back of jacket at centre.
Braiding
? line of blue braid inside the fringing on the two layers of the bustle and around the sleeves
Lace
Row of lace standing out from the front opening of the jacket and around the neck.
Fibre / Weave
Garment is of blue grey self striped silk.
The skirt has sheer organza lining.
The jacket has white cotton lining.
The fringing is silk.
- Natural dye
- Synthetic dye
Stiffening / Lining / Padding
There is some boning in the underarm of the jacket lining and a wire stay at the centre back neck in the lace trim to make it stand up.
Measurements
| bustle | jacket | skirt | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Girth | |||
| Waist | 705 mm | 660 mm | |
| Cuff | 220 mm | ||
| Hem circumference | 3880 mm | ||
| Vertical | |||
| Front waist to hem | 610 mm | 920 mm | |
| Back neck to hem | 385 mm | ||
| Back waist to hem | 1210 mm | ||
| Sleeve length | 540 mm | ||
| Horizontal | |||
| Neck to sleeve head | 175 mm | ||
| Convert to inches | |||
Bustle:
Centre length includes fringe
Fullest part lower layer: 890 mm
Width top layer: 470 mm
Waist to shortest point top layer: 280 mm
Waist to base of points top layer: 340 mm
Jacket:
Sleeve underarm to wrist: 400 mm
Underarm to waist at side: 185 mm
Width of sleeve at armhoe: 360 mm
Front shoulder to waist: 420 mm
Skirt:
Tie length: 1010 mm
Additional material
Articles, publications, diagrams and receipts descriptions
Transcripts of the death certificates of Elizabeth Bayldon (1899), William Bayldon (1900), Mary Grace Bayldon (1925) and E.C.V. Bayldon (1941)
Newspaper article Coffs Coast Advocate Nov. 10, 2005
Newspaper article Coffs Coast Advocate Nov. 19, 2005: 'Bayldon Historical Roots Grow Deep'
Other related objects
A complete collection of objects including underwear, nightwear, blouses, jackets, hats, skirts, camisoles, scarves, wraps and dresses. Some of the underwear is embroidered with the initials E.C.V. (Eliza Catherine Valentine Bayldon)
There are also handbags, a calling card holder and the top hat worn by William Bayldon when he was a JP. This was kept wrapped in a silk scarf in an oval metal hat box.
There is also one child's dress.
There are photographic portraits of Eliza and William Bayldon hanging in the foyer of William Bayldon Public School.
Condition
Evidence of repairs
Colour has run in places.
State
- Excellent
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
Damage
- Discolouration