Lady Grace Fane

What people wore

Shirtfronts Hidden Beneath Formal Wear

To maintain respectability when they could not afford an entire formal wardrobe, gentlemen often wore a separate shirtfront or dickey to conceal striped shirts.

Getting around

Faster and cheaper travel by rail

A journey from London to Liverpool by coach once took twenty-two hours and cost £4 inside, whereas by the mid-nineteenth century, the same journey by train could be completed in just six hours for £2 5s.

At the table

Affordable staple foods for families

Onions were a common, affordable staple, often costing about a halfpenny for a bunch of at least a dozen. Watercress was also a popular, cheap working-class staple available for a halfpenny for four bunches.

Music

Collecting Coins for Dance Music

At platform dances, musicians sometimes used a portable dancing booth with a box placed out front to collect coins from each dancer. This ensured payment for players when the older custom of paying during long-wise country dances became difficult to manage.

Daily life

Water Collection and Coal Ranges

Many working-class homes lacked running water, requiring families to collect it from a shared street pump and use an outdoor privy. Inside, cooking was done on a coal-burning range, which often included a boiler for heating water.

What it cost

Cost of Boots and Daily Labor

A pair of Blucher boots cost one shilling and threepence, while a pair of Clarence boots cost two shillings and a penny. Making one pair of boots was considered roughly equivalent to a day's work for a moderate workman.