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Ithaca museum puts the evolution of unmentionables on display ...

Underneath it All – Underwear through the Ages, is a new exhibit at the History Center in Tompkins County. The exhibit, which runs through September, shows how undergarments have changed in Tompkins County from the 1700’s until today. On display are girl’s slips starting from 1750 (far right) to the 1950’s (far left). The museum located at 401 East State Street in Ithaca is open from 11 to 5 Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays and admission is free. Stephen D. Cannerelli / The Post-Standard

Ithaca, NY -- One glass display held a century-old teddy, a silken apparition of lace and ribbons worthy of a Lady Gaga video. Nearby, a pair of patched, red long johns looked stiff enough to walk off by themselves.

"These garments weren't meant to be seen by everybody," museum director Scott Callan said. "And they tell us things about private lives that a shirt or a jacket cannot."

Your great-grandparents' skivvies are showing this summer in "Underneath It All: Underwear Through the Ages," an exhibit at The History Center in Tompkins County, in Ithaca.

On display is the evolution of undies during the last 200 years, a constant battle between cruelty and comfort that was waged, for the most part, unseen. Pieces range from a quilted 1780s-era petticoat, thick as a modern Snuggie, to the hoop skirt, or crinoline -- an implement of torture that resembles a walking, bulbous birdcage. Some garments look fashionably retro. Some look dangerously sadistic. Some even tell stories.

For example, one collection reveals the homemade wedding ensemble, sewn by a young bride from Tompkins County, who died tragically just five months after the wedding. Her broken-hearted husband packed away the garments, and they remained untouched for a century, until reappearing in the glass display.

"History museums, I think, unfairly have a reputation for being kind of old, dusty and dark," said Callan, who came to The History Center a year ago from Illinois. "We need to show we're willing to give people a new perspective on things. If it takes showing off your underwear to get people through the door, we'll do that. Still, this is a serious subject, and there are things to be learned."

Callan stood beside the wire hoop skirt, which expanded to the floor, giving its female wearers a figure like Frosty the Snowman.

"It really hindered one's ability to sit," he said. "There are historical accounts of women being basically upended and pushed to the ground by a strong gust of wind, because these acted as a big sail, a big umbrella. ... If you can say anything, historically, it is that women have probably suffered more than men for fashion, especially with undergarments," Callan said.

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