SeacoastNH.com Presents 
Historic Portsmouth #452

We live in a dressed-down era. Locals wear bluejeans to the theater and sweatpants to the mall. Tourists walk the streets in outfits that stretch the definition of the word "casual" to the breaking point. Not so Miss Finch. We don't know who Miss Finch was, but when she arrived at the Appledore Hotel in the Victorian era, she was dressed to the nines. (Continued below)

Our ancestors kept to a more rigid dress code even while traveling. Visitors who stayed the summer at the early Wentworth by the Sea were known to bring trunk after trunk of clothing to suit every occasion. On special nights, guests staying at our early seacoast hotels would elect a slate of officers to preside over the meal, print the menu, give speeches, and arrange a lengthy series of formal toasts. Back in the day, every carpet was a red carpet. Today the guests show up in  shorts and tee-shirts, talk on their mobile phones, and drink right out of the bottle. (Photo courtesy of the Portsmouth Athenaeum)

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