"You may all go to Hell - and I will go to Texas"... to celebrate Women's History Month

  

You may all go to Hell - and I will go to Texas. 

Those aren't my words. They're Davy Crockett's. 

But he was onto something. 

Though I don't wish anyone to go to hell, I do wish you'd all go to Texas! 

I recently had the pleasure of visiting over my Spring break. I saw lots of cute cowboys strutin their stuff in their blue jeans, boots and over-sized belt-buckles but I wondered why do they get all the credit as the tough Texans.

I figured there had to be some impressive Texas women. 

And I was right!

Since March is Women's History Month I thought it absolutely appropriate to do (and share) a little research on them ;) 

  

This website had several impressive Texan cowgirls; here are some of my favorites: 

• Angelina: She is the only woman to have a Texas river, a county, and a national forest named for her. In 1690, the name Angelina was given at baptism to a Native-American woman who was educated by Spanish friars at the Mission of San Juan Bautista on the Rio Grande and perhaps also at the College of Zacatecas. She spoke Spanish as well as several Indian languages so she became a translator, including translating for an expedition that founded the Alamo and the city of San Antonio. 

 

•  Sarah Horton Cockrell: (1819 – 1892) She was a very successful businesswoman who built the first iron bridge over the Trinity River at Dallas in 1872 and Dallas' first three-story hotel. Left a widow with small children in 1858, all she had was a stack of debts and her husband's ferry business. She thought big and invested wisely. She set up her own corporations, the Dallas Bridge Company, and the S. H. Cockrell Co., which owned a flour mill. When she died in 1892, her properties were so extensive that her will had to be published in pamphlet form. 

   

•  Bessie Coleman: (1892-1926) She was one of the first licensed female pilots and the world's first black female aviator and barnstormer, had a spectacular but brief career in air shows. She was born in Atlanta, Texas, the twelfth of 13 children. Her mother, an illiterate former slave, borrowed books so Bessie could learn to read. She encouraged young blacks to become involved in aviation. She once refused to perform in Waxahachie, where she had grown up, until blacks were allowed to use the same entrance as whites to the exhibition. Black aviators memorialized her by naming their flying clubs and their magazine after her. In 1990, a street to Chicago's O'Hare Airport was named Bessie Coleman Drive, and, in 1995, the U.S. Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp in her honor.

 

•  Sarah T.Hughes: (1896-1985) She was an attorney, legislator, women's rights activist, United Nations supporter, and Texas' first female state and federal judge. A member of a Dallas law firm from 1923 to 1935, she was elected to her first term in the Texas House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1930 and voted "Most Valuable Member" her second term.She was national president of the Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs in 1952. The national organization spearheaded her nomination for the vice presidency on the Democratic Party ticket that year, the first woman ever considered, though she withdrew her name. And, after Kennedy's assassination in 1963, she administered the Presidential oath of office to Lyndon B. Johnson.
  
   
• Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias: (1911 – 1956) She earned more medals and set more records in more sports than any other athlete, male or female, in the twentieth century. She dominated the women's events at the 1932 Olympics, winning three gold medals and setting world records in the 80-meter hurdles and the javelin throw. She excelled in every sport she tried and, in particular, won every existing women's golf title. In 1953, she was elected to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame. The only race she ever lost was to cancer, in 1956. 

• Sarah Ragle Weddington: (1945 – ) She is best known for having successfully argued the 1973: Roe v. Wade abortion rights case before the U.S. Supreme Court. She was one of only 40 among 1,600 students at the law school at the University of Texas at Austin. She was active in the Texas women's movement, lobbied in the Texas Legislature for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment and was a founder of the Texas Women's Political Caucus. She was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1972 and helped with the following: 

• change the law that prevented women from getting credit cards in their own names
• stopped schools from firing pregnant teachers
•  improved the treatment of rape victims.

•  Also, under President Jimmy Carter, she became general counsel for the Department of Agriculture in Washington, an advisor to the president on women's issues, and later became a member of the White House senior staff. She now teaches at the University of Texas at Austin, writes, and speaks publicly, particularly about women and leadership.

Pretty impressive, right? 

I bet there are even more impressive women in your own state. So look them up. 

ALSO, celebrate the women in Your. Own. History.

One of the things I did on my trip was visit family and look at old family photographs. I got to see a picture of my great, great, great grandmother!?! Talk to your moms, aunts, grandmothers and others to learn about the women you came from.  

This month's 2011 theme is "Our History is Our Strength." 

I hope you find both.

Happy Women's History Month!!!

Southern Belle Side Note: Joggling Boards

"As my mother used to say, a joggling board is to a piazza what  mint is to a julep. If you have to ask what a piazza is - they're known as porches outside Charleston - then it's unlikely you know what a joggling board is, either" (1). 

"It's pretty simple, really. A joggling board is a piece of Charleston history that measures up to 22 feet long and 13 inches wide, a supple piece of pine usually supported between wooden rollers two feet off the ground. It looks like a giant tongue depressor and acts like a trampoline" (1). 

I was born and raised (and still reside) in the Lowcountry of South Carolina so joggling boards were a familiar sight for me. Though we don't have one on our porch - there isn't room since we have a swing and some rockers already ;) - there is one in my neighborhood. 

I had family in town for the 4th of July. They were from Texas and they immediately noticed and questioned "that long rocker thing." 

It was then, honest to God, the first time it ever dawned on me that joggling boards are an odd sight. They are  sorta like a hybrid mix between a rocking chair and a see-saw. When we tried to explain to my relatives what they were and why they were built that way, the best we could come up with was they were just built long to adequately fill up those long Charleston piazzas. 

Although, after a little research, I  found out joggling boards have a very specific history. 

Their history in Charleston dates back to the very early 1800s on Acton Plantation in Sumter, SC. A Mr. Cleland Kinloch lost his wife and had his sister, Mrs. Benjamin Kinloch Huger, come to care for his household. Mrs. Huger apparently suffered from very severe rheumatism. (2)

In an attempt to get some exercise and fresh air, her chair was placed in a carriage so she could go for rides; when she detailed this and her poor health to her relatives in Scotland, they sent her a model of a joggling board. They told her that she could sit on it and bounce to get some exercise. [If that was "exercise," I think I'd have enjoyed living in the 1800s; I'd take that any day over 45 minutes on the elliptical!] (2)

After they made the model life-size, the joggling boards became incredibly popular and spread to piazzas all over the Lowcountry. Beyond providing Mrs. Huger "exercise," joggling boards became especially popular for two reasons: 

1) Children loved to play on them. They really are like trampolines. My brother and I used to jump all over them. 

2) It was an excuse for couples to get close. In fact, they were known as "courting benches;" a lady would sit on one end and her crush on the other. The couple would "joggle" down the bench until they reached each other in the middle where they could whisper sweet nothings and hold hands and such. There was even a legend that if you had a joggling board on your front porch, you'd never have an unwed daughter. (3) 

Hmm, maybe I should invest in one of those for the front porch ;) 

Their popularity faded after World War II when the wood and hand-crafted labor were harder to come by. However, in the 1970s they regained popularity when the Old Charleston Joggling Board Company was formed after the tricentennial of South Carolina. (2)

Now, the history lives on as more and more people see those "long rocker things" known as joggling boards. 

Next time you see one, be sure to sit down so you can get yourself some "exercise" and maybe even a marriage proposal ;) 

Sources: 

1 - The Vanishing Coast 

2 - Old Charleston Joggling Board 

3 - Joggling Board

A History of Menstruation: terms, customs/beliefs, and fashion!

Yet again I am combining school with blogging because I simply lack any brain power or extra time to muster up a creative original after this draining week of something due in every class and much less sleep than I would like.
Below you'll find a paper I wrote for my History of Fashion and Manners class focusing on the history of menstruation...

Not my funniest post (at least not on purpose) but it is full of facts, especially random ones!

Menstruation: Manners, Fashion and More

            Menstruation happens all the time but we hardly ever hear about it. Furthermore, though every society faces this act of nature, many tend to treat it differently and those customs have changed over time. In uncovering some of the mystery of menstruation, I shall focus on words, customs or beliefs, products and fashions.

            First, there are several interesting words regarding menstruation. Some are just nicknames for it such as Aunt Flo, On the Rag, Leak Week, Surfing the Crimson Tide, and My Dot, among others (4). However, some names are much more specific: “menstruation” is from Old English “mondablot” or “month blood;” in Latin, “menses” means “month;” an Amazon culture’s word for “woman” translates to “the person with a red streak down the leg” (2); and the term “period” dates back to 1822 meaning “an interval of time” (4). Furthermore, some menstruation words have much more tainted meanings: “The term ‘ritual’ is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘R’tu,’ which means ‘menstrual.’ This etymology suggests that ritual in a general sense and menstrual acts have a common origin;” Also, the “word taboo comes from the Polyneisain tapua, meaning both ‘sacred’ and ‘menstruation’… [where] sacred means both ‘set apart’ and ‘cursed’.” (4). Lastly, some of the words simply refer to products: “Tampon is French for ‘plug’ or ‘bung,’ a variant from the Old French tapon meaning a ‘piece of cloth to stop a hole;” for o.b. tampon company, “o.b. means ‘ohne Binde,’ without a pad, in German;” and Kotex stood for “COtten-like TEXture… because women were used to cotton and the new Kotex was made from wood pulp, making it cheaper” (2).

            Second, there has been a vast array of menstruation customs or beliefs over the years. First, in reference to religion:

 “Judaism, Hinduism, and Islam all prohibit sex during menstruation. Both Jews and Muslims require women to achieve ritual purity after menstruation, through the Jewish mikvah (literally ‘collection,’ as in a collection of water) or the Islamicghusl (ablution), respectively;” also, “Christian churches have refused communion to menstruating women” (4). Beyond religious reasons, sex was discouraged while women were menstruating because “During the nineteenth century, it was widely thought that intercourse with a menstruating woman would transmit gonorrhea, which may have been mistaken for trichomoniasis. Trichomoniasis becomes worse during menstruation because of lower vaginal acidity”(4).

            There were other mis-informed beliefs regarding menstruation blood: Hippocrates of Ancient Greece “may have started the process of bleeding out after observing women recovering from bloating and aches and pains after starting their periods” (2); “Menstrual blood was thought to cure warts, birthmarks, gout, goiters, hemorrhoids, epilepsy, worms, leprosy, and headaches. It was also used in love charms, could ward off demons, and was occasionally used as an offering to a god. The first napkin worn by a virgin was thought to be a cure for the plague” and in “many cultures, a fetus was thought to be formed in the womb by clotting menstrual blood” (4). 

Additional misunderstandings came from beliefs about the mental states of women on their periods: “At one point in history, women who complained of menstrual cramps (dysmenorrhea) were sent to psychiatrists because menstrual cramps were seen as a rejection of one’s femininity” and “Psychoanalysts, such as Freud, have suggested that menstruation is a “bloody sign of a woman’s loss of penis” and that it is a reminder of a woman’s “uncleanliness and inferiority” (4).

Some things assumed in relation to menstruation, though, were not incorrect. These included some of the firsts concepts of time and numerical thinking, as well as the first lunar calendar, all based upon the menstrual cycle (4).

Lastly, a few more concrete customs brought on by menstruation include:

• menses huts have been built in many societies to keep women separate while menstruating for reasons from fear to reverence (4)
• as matriarchy gave way to patriarchy, menstruation shifted from being powerful to a tool of oppression (4)
• washing and changing underclothing was not done for fear of causing more bleeding (2)
• strong perfumes were used to mask the smell (2)
• some cultures believe the smell is a sign of fertility and attracts men (2)
• many women wore nothing and just let it run down their legs, hidden by long chemises and dresses (2)
• factories where women worked would simply lay straw down on the floor to absorb the menstrual blood (2)

Though most women wore nothing initially, as products became available, more and more women started to use them. First there was a belted pad, then an adhesive pad before tampons and finally cups.

First, “American patents for menstrual devices start in 1854 for a belt with steel springs to hold a pad, but really don't pick up steam until the 1870s” (2). Belted pads were worn in between the legs and then taken off to be washed at night. They were used up until the 1970s and could be held up with suspenders or belts and pads could be pinned in (2). An image of a possible 19^th century belt is pictured here. 

Pads of this type are still available from smaller companies(2).

However, most of these fell out of favor with the arrival of disposable pads from Kotex is 1921 which likely developed from bandages for soldiers in World War I (2). Kotex further dominated the menstrual market when it came out with adhesive pads in the 1970s. A Swedish ad demonstrates the new product and how much more comfortable and concealable it was, seen here. 

Though tampons were sold to mass audiences in the 1930s in America, it is likely that they had been around for years and years before that; for example, “Ancient Egyptians used softened papyrus as rudimentary tampons  [and] Hippocrates notes that the Greeks used lint wrapped around wood…The modern tampon was invented by Dr. Earle Haas in 1929, which was called a ‘catamenial device’ or ‘monthly device.’ He trademarked the brand name Tampax” (4).  Tampons altered once more with the addition of an applicator which was patented in the 1930s (2).

The most recent menstrual product is the cup. It was first created in the 1930s and made from rubber latex (3); however, it fell out of favor and only recently resurfaced as a popular option. The cups are reusable and very environmentally friendly preventing the waste created by all the disposable feminine hygiene products (3).

Lastly, how does all of this relate to fashion?

First, women wore nothing. This would seem like it would be disastrous but due to malnourishment, physical exertion, higher pregnancy rates and other factors, women in previous eras had far less periods than today’s woman; “The average women in a modern industrialized society menstruates 450 times in her life. Conversely, prehistoric women menstruated only 50 times—and today, women in agrarian regions menstruate about 150 times in a lifetime” (4). However, when a period did come, women would cover it with a chemise: a long, floor-length gown (2).

It took a long time for this fashion to fade but eventually wearing of underpants became accepted practice around 1800 and remained so throughout the century (2).

These underpants were often open in the crotch for dealing with menstruation and urination (2); However, crotches soon closed because of “shorter and looser, more clinging dresses, allowing women to reach under and pull their drawers down (‘draw’ means ‘pull’) when on the toilet and to better conceal their vulvas if their dresses hiked up, as from the wind, or from a more active life than in former decades” (2).

As undergarments shrank in size, protection from period leaks came in the form of almost diapers when women would take old clothes, handkerchiefs, sheets and other fabrics and fold them over or button and pin them under their clothes; these could be highly visible and bulky but were their only options (2).

          A further form of protection came from sanitary aprons. These were worn from the shoulders and hung down, not to absorb blood as pads would do, but simply to prevent clothing from being stained (1). 

Next came the belts and then the disposable pads and lastly tampons and cups.

Some other interesting fashion that has evolved from menstruation includes the following: some women in India wear a scarf around their neck dyed by their menstrual blood as a sign that they are on their period; and scholars suggest that marriage rites are an extension of menarchal rites, which may explain why many bridal dresses were historically red. The bride would also walk on a red carpet to the wedding ceremony, wearing a red veil (4).

In conclusion, menstruation may be overlooked but actually has had a huge impact on our society through words, customs, products and fashion.

Sources:

1. Cappon, Colleen. “Shocking Facts About the Flow: What You Always Wanted to Know About Your Period, But Were Too Afraid to Ask.” Fox News. 29 Mar. 2010. Fox News Network. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,590056,00.html>.
2. Finley, Harry. “When they menstruated, they left a trail of blood behind them.” MUM. 1999. Museum of Menstruation and Women’s Health. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://www.mum.org/pastgerm.htm>.
3. “Menstrual Cup History and Our Story.” The Diva Cup. 12 Apr. 2010. 10 Apr. 2010 <http://www.divacup.com/en/home/history/>.
4. “68 Random Facts About… Menstruation.” Random History. 2010. 10 Apr. 2010. <http://facts.randomhistory.com/random-facts-about-menstruation.html>.