Lillian Williams
Theatre Major
From Ball Gowns to Basketball: A Study of Antique Athletic Wear
Imagine trying to move in a corset. It restricts your range of motion, forces your posture and even limits your ability to breathe. While these issues may seem archaic to the modern woman, it was not all that long ago that they were a reality for Mount Holyoke women.
This summer I worked in collaboration with Mount Holyoke’s Archives and Special Collections and the Mount Holyoke Antique Clothing Collection to curate part of an exhibit on the physical education at Mount Holyoke. Through my research it became clear that advances in access to sports and exercise often meant advances for feminism as well. Using the resources made available by my internship, I was able to track the growth of physical education at Mount Holyoke through clothing history.