Professor Irma G. Bowen began collecting items in 1920 as a hands-on teaching tool for students in the Home Economics department at the University of New Hampshire. The collection was named in Bowen’s honor after her death in 1947, and by the time it transitioned to the University Museum in 1969, the Bowen Collection had gained new significance. With most of the objects donated by local colleagues and families, the preserved items were recognized as an unexpected archive of New Hampshire heritage on a personal scale, a glimpse of lives otherwise invisible to the historical record.
This digital catalog continues the Bowen Collection's mission to teach while expanding its reach by making it more widely accessible to those interested in the design, technique, artistry, and historical relevance of clothing.
Dress, sheer orange silk chiffon with voided cream velvet pile, 1920s
Dress, taupe silk crepe with short sleeves and overskirt embroidered with cord and gold beads, c. 1920
Cloche, yellow silk with raffia accents, 1920s
Shoes, white satin with strap, 1920s
Suit, black silk satin with matching jacket, embroidered and beaded, 1920s
Home Economics sewing samples, 1921
Dress, gray silk satin with a netted silver bead overlay and gray chiffon panels, 1921-1925
Dress, dark olive chiffon with brown satin sash over brown satin foundation, c. 1922
Sheath dress with vest, sleeveless, pale gold and tangerine chiffon with rows of bugle beads, c. 1923
Sheath dress, sleeveless, aqua silk chiffon and lace with silk ribbon flowers, 1925
Sheath dress, sleeveless with irregular hem, apricot chiffon with pink and coral beads, c. 1925
Dress, sheer lavender silk chiffon with silver and white beads and rhinestones, c. 1926
