On Wednesday evening the Honourable the Speaker, and Gentlemen of the House of Burgesses, gave a ball at the Capitol for the entertainment of his Excellency Lord BOTETOURT; and it is with the greatest pleasure we inform our readers that the same patriotic spirit which gave rise to the association of the Gentlemen on a late event, was most agreeably manifested in the dress of the Ladies on this occasion, who, to the number of near one hundred, appeared in homespun gowns; a lively and striking instance of their acquiescence; and concurrence in whatever may be the true and essential interest of their country. It were to be wished that all assemblies of American ladies would exhibit a like example of public virtue and private economy, so amiably united.
Excerpt from the Virginia Gazette (December 14, 1769)
In this article from its December 14, 1769, issue, the Virginia Gazette describes women‘s efforts to protest taxes on goods imported from England by not wearing clothing that was either imported or made of imported materials.