The term "material culture" has been developed to describe a multidisciplinary approach to the study of objects and the context in which they were made and used. This approach is especially important for the study of women's history, as women are rarely represented in the types of public — or even private — documents that form the basis of traditional historical research.

Using examples from the collections of Winterthur and Bayou Bend, this lecture shows how the study of needlework can enrich the understanding of women's lives in the 18th and early 19th centuries. A reception follows.