1. “THE SAME POWER THAT BROUGHT THE SLAVE OUT OF BONDAGE WILL, IN HIS OWN GOOD TIME AND WAY, BRING ABOUT THE EMANCIPATION OF WOMEN, AND MAKE HER EQUAL IN POWER AND DOMINION THAT SHE WAS IN THE BEGINNING.” ANDREA RICCA AND ANDI WILKINSON Amelia Jenks Bloomer

3. Biography Born in Homer, New York on May 27, 1818 Born Amelia Jenks Middle class family Limited childhood education Married Dexter Bloomer at 22 Bloomer was a lawyer and part owner of a local newspaper; forward-thinking; fit with Amelia’s personality

4. Biography (cont.) Attended Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 Began newspaper for women in January 1849; The Lily: A Ladies Journal Devoted to Temperance and Literature Began public lectures in 1851 Amelia was very active and more well-known by 1853

5. Biography (cont.) While lecturing, she became more involved in the dress reform movement Wore her new style of clothes to her lectures, called bloomers Moved to Mount Vernon, Ohio in 1854; her newspaper lasted one more year after moving there Continued her speeches more out west and Midwest after she moved Moved again to Council Bluffs, Iowa in 1855 Continued fight for women’s rights and became the first president of the Iowa Woman Suffrage Association Died December 30, 1894

6. Bloomer’s Actions Attended the Seneca Falls Convention; her first real awareness Inspired Set out to help women’s rights, suffrage, temperance The Lily: A Ladies Journal Devoted to Temperance and Literature Began her own lectures

7. Bloomer’s Actions (cont.)

11. Dress-reform movement:  Style of clothing known as “bloomers”  Loose-fitted blouse with a knee length skirt and baggy pants  Took away from the style of corsets which were worn to make women have the “number 8” figure  By 1860, she stopped wearing bloomers  Still believed in dressing comfortably but started dressing more traditionally to not be distracting at lectures

12. Bloomer’s Actions (cont.)

13. Bloomer’s Impact Women’s options for dress were restricted before her movement Women typically wore dresses and underneath would wear corsets The corsets were made to make women look like an “8;” could cause health issues and deformities Bloomers provided not only an alternative style of dress, but an alternative interpretation of women Gave them options Did not require them to fit a certain profile Spread the message of women’s suffrage and rights