Jonathan Sheldon's Freedom Suit

Townsend, John · 1775

This cotton nankeen suit was given to Jonathan Sheldon in 1775 upon the completion of his apprenticeship to a member of the Townsend family of cabinet makers in Newport, Rhode Island. The promise of a “Freedom Suit” at the end of an apprenticeship was part of a standard contract between pupil and master in the 18th century, and would have been the young man or woman’s best clothing as he or she set out into the world. While a simple suit like this would have been very common at the time, this is the only one of its kind that is known to have survived.