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Famous People of the Finger Lakes

Amelia Jenks Bloomer (1818-1894)

A women's rights activist from Homer (Cortland County) who settled in Seneca Falls (Seneca County), Bloomer is credited with revolutionizing women’s fashion. Believing that long dresses were dangerous and had the propensity to drag in the mud on unpaved streets, she designed a tight-bodiced outfit, cinched at the waist with a gathered knee-length skirt over multiple petticoats, flouncing over a pair of baggy trousers that became known as "bloomers."

See also:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amelia_Bloomer

http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/wori/shs4.htm