While many began to embrace breastfeeding, other women confined their maternal roles to the privacy of their own homes. Vintage Everyday.Photographic portraits in the mid-1800s were typically formal affairs, with subjects posing stiffly in their Sunday best. But the breastfeeding pictures feature more relaxed poses and a look into the real women’s lives. Vintage Everyday.Some of the traditional markers are still in the Victorian-style photographs. Many women still chose a formal pose. Vintage Everyday.The photographs, most of which are elaborately framed, show the women bare-faced with their hair worn centrally-parted and tied back. Vintage Everyday.Wikimedia.Typically, an old photograph would take up to 10 minutes to develop while it developed on a silver or copper plate. Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard UniversityYoung mothers, in particular, enjoyed this fad of breastfeeding photographs. Vintage Everyday.Given that the images are daguerrotypes – the first official photographic process – the subjects are not as relaxed in the photos as somebody today might be. Harvard University.Some of the children pictured in the Victorian pictures appear to be at least 12 months old, whereas these days, women usually stop breastfeeding by six months. Sparking hot debates today. Wikimedia.In the 18th century, flour or cereal mixed with broth were introduced as substitutes for breastfeeding, but this was also unsuccessful. Improved infant formulas appeared in the mid-19th century, providing an alternative to wet nursing, and even breastfeeding itself. Flicker.This is a postcard of a woman breastfeeding. During the time where these photographs were popular, post cards like this were very common. Flicker.Flicker.In the 19th century, mother’s milk was considered best for babies, but the quality of the breast milk was found to be varied. The quality of breast milk was considered good only if the mother had a good diet, had physical exercise and was mentally in balance. Vintage Everyday.By 1900, 9 out of 10 women breastfed their new babies. Buzzfeed Partner.
