Fatigue Dress, from the Parasol Drills series (N18) for Allen & Ginter Cigarettes Brands 1888

This chromolithograph of a fashionable woman in a ‘Fatigue Dress’ was one of a series of collectible cards packaged with Allen & Ginter Cigarettes, around 1888. But what does 'fatigue' mean here? Not exhaustion! It signifies informal at-home wear, a relaxed style. These cards were aimed at male consumers, and often celebrated an ideal of female beauty and domesticity. The woman’s dress, hat and cane all speak to upper-class leisure and a culture of conspicuous consumption. The company itself was based in Richmond, Virginia – a city still reckoning with the legacy of slavery and the Civil War. These cards offer a glimpse into the cultural values and social hierarchies of late 19th-century America. By studying such images and the businesses that produced them, we can understand the complex relationship between commerce, gender and class in this period. Cigarette cards might seem trivial, but they provide rich sources for social and cultural historians.