Alexander Douglas patented the “new and improved bustle” on April 21, 1857, eventually reshaping what was seen as the ideal silhouette in the United States and Europe during the 1870s and 1880s.

That prompted a brief flurry of interest from people who told Rivers Cofield the words were telegraph messages, which were written in a coded shorthand to make them cheaper and fa ...

Although evening dresses usually had shorter ... is boned and the skirt was worn over a bustle which gave the angular silhouette so fashionable in the 1880s. Inside is a maker's label for a ...