The History of Women's Handbags: Part 2
The importance of trunks, travel, and zippers
And we are back - missed The History of Women’s Handbags: Part 1? Check out the Handbag Designer 101 Substack from the week before.
Women, handbags, and fashion finally found their way in the 19th century when rail and ocean travel took off, and there was a demand for new purse styles that were durable and could hold more items. (We can parallel this trend jump COVID-19 when handbag sales dropped, but travel bags and suitcases significantly rose when people started going on trips to save their sanity.)
Interestingly enough, one of the first known handbag designers for women was founded by a woman. In 1839, Harriet Jane Cave, or H.J. Cave & Sons, created the railway basket and leather trunks for travel in England. Not only did she develop bags made of leather and was one of the first to advertise in a magazine, but she was said to be the inspiration for Louis Vuitton and Gucci. H.J. Cave & Sons was also responsible for creating the stackable Osilite Trunk in the first "trapezoid" silhouette for a celeb client to distinguish herself from the lesser class passengers, thus creating the first "designer bag." (See my Substack on the origin of the trapezoid bag.) It’s important also to note that photography became a medium in 1839, so anything before that is typically drawings or artwork.)
Fun fact: H.J. Cave & Sons was located at 40 Wigmore Street, and Louis Vuitton’s other location outside Paris was 285 Oxford Street in London. That is about a seven-minute walk from each other. Considering Harriet J. Cave & Sons was issued a Royal Warrant for the trunks supply to the Princess of Wales and her daughter, Princess Victoria, Vuitton kept his eye on her brand and inspired his flat-topped trunks with trianon canvas, making them lightweight, airtight, and, of course, stackable.
Travel also brought on the combined trend of DIY and fashion with the more oversized carryall "carpet bag" (most famously known with Mary Poppins) made with scraps of carpet and rugs and made for the mass market. Also, note that metal was now used in day-to-day life and thus impacted what a frame bag for women is known to be, as an upgrade from its reticule predecessor with bone or wood, now with fancy beadwork imported from India.
This became a unique time for women and handbags, with handbag patents found as early as the late 1850s. Bags were made of leather with more functionality, and early feminists fought to advocate for pockets in garments like men's. The pocket symbolizes gender inequality and the struggle for women's equal rights. Women began to own bags for different occasions, such as shopping and travel, both by hand and commercially. Louis Vuitton introduced luggage and hand-held travel bags that featured hand-painted initials for upper-class women of means.
By the 1890's, New York women carried daintier handbags and wore fancier shoes than their practical contemporaries in Boston (not much has changed there.) As a result, the name “Boston Bag” was used for a travel handbag or overnight bag with short handles - long before anyone was clamoring for its namesake by Celine. This is the time when handbags become a fashion category in retail.
By the 20th century, handbags became bigger as women became more independent. Factory-working women needed sturdier bags to carry more, and their higher-class counterparts were purchasing the luxury version—handbags were evolving into status symbols for commercialization. Department store shopping became more commonplace (with Bloomingdale's opening in 1860), leading to more independence for women, which impacted handbag design to take men's silhouettes like the satchel but give a feminine twist.
Suffragettes wore leather shoulder bags instead of their dainty handbag chain predecessor, and handbags now had compartments for additional storage. (It seems wacky, but the early handbag patents are all about the interior pockets!)
The invention of the zipper in 1913 didn't mean anything in handbags until Emile-Maurice Hermès traveled across North America and met Henry Ford. In 1923, Hermès filed a patent for the zipper to produce leather goods. They created the “le sac pour l'auto” (which became a big legal mess with Ettore Bugatti, who initially commissioned Hermes to make a bag for the launch of their Torpedo). This bag became known as the Hermès Bolide, the first handbag with a zipper closure. In the post-World War I era, women’s societal role rapidly changed significantly when women were legally allowed to vote. The interesting point that becomes more noticeable is how much class impacts handbag fashion and style.
WHEW! That was a lot! Hold your breath for next week, when we will discuss the Spanish Flu and how it correlates to post-COVID fashion trends and, of course, more handbags. 👜
If you missed this week’s Handbag Designer 101 Podcast, you can listen on all platforms to this week’s episode:
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