An American History of Purses

Today the US handbag market is estimated to be nearly $12 billion, with most of the purchasing done by women, but into the early 20th Century purses hadn’t yet become the nearly-exclusive domain of women. The integration of pockets into men’s clothing, and the marketing push of toiletry items to women in the 1920s and 1930s drove this differentiated market  development. Joining me in this episode is Dr. Kathleen B. Casey, Professor of History and Director of the Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program at Furman University and author of The Things She Carried: A Cultural History of the Purse in America.

Our theme song is “Frogs Legs Rag,” composed by James Scott and performed by Kevin MacLeod, licensed under Creative Commons. The mid-episode music is “Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag,” composed by Felix Powell with lyrics by George Asaf” and recorded in Camden, New Jersey, on December 22, 1916; the performance is in the public domain and is available via the LIbrary of Congress National Jukebox. The episode image is “Shoppers. Amsterdam, New York,” photographed by John Collier, Jr.; the photograph was taken in October 1941, and is available in the public domain via the Library of Congress.

Related Episodes:

• Fashion, Feminism, and the New Woman of the late 19th Century
• French Fashion in Gilded Age America
• Amelia Bloomer
• The Women who Entered the Federal Workforce during the Civil War Era
• The History of Blue Jeans
• Ericka Huggins & the Black Panther Party
• The 1966 Compton's Cafeteria Riot
• Alice Roosevelt Longworth

Additional Sources:

• “Ötzi the Iceman: Examining New Evidence from the Famous Copper Age Mummy,” by: M. Vidale, L. Bondioli, D.W. Frayer, M. Gallinaro and A. Vanzetti, Penn Museum Expedition Magazine, Volume 58 / Number 2, 2016.
• “MALE ATTIRE.; Charlotte P. Gilman Inveighs Against It but Finds Redeeming Features.” From The Independent, New York Times, March 5, 1905.
• “What you may not know about the Triangle shirtwaist factory fire,” by Peter Liebhold, National Museum of American History, September 5, 2018.
• “The Surprising Origins of Kotex Pads,” by Kat Eschner, Smithsonian Magazine, Originally published August 11, 2017, and updated November 9, 2018.
• “Handbag Market (2026 - 2033),” Grand View Research, GVR Clothing, Footwear & Accessories Research Team, April 2026 

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