Historical information

This handmade woman’s nightdress comes from the Kinnear family of Allandale, Allansford. In the early 1840s William and John Allan took up a large tract of land to the east of the Hopkins River and in the late 1840s William Allan took over the Allandale section of the run and John Allan took the Tooram section. In 1906 the Kinnear family acquired a portion of Allandale which included the homestead. The nightdress came from the estates of the donor’s great aunts.

Significance

This item is retained as an example of an early 20th century woman’s nightdress and it has the provenance of coming from the Kinnear family of Allandale Allansford.

Physical description

This is a white cotton nightdress with an opening to the waist which is enclosed with two white buttons. There is a frill of lace on one side of the opening. The white collar also has a large white frill of lace. The long sleeves are inset and have a band of lace at the wrists. There are some stains on the dress.