[Kirkland Family Relative]

Today when a cellphone holds thousands of photographs, it’s easy to forget that holding a loved one’s image in your hand was until recently, impossible for all but the wealthy. This young woman, posing for her portrait, wears her corset laced to an uncommonly small size. Although corsets are mythologized as sex objects today, in the 19th century, corsets were worn by all women who wanted their body shape to conform to the current style. By the 1880s, small round waists were equated with good breeding and gentility.