Undergarment Boudreaux showed the world that an American woman could establish and run a company, and she also caused a revolution in the underwear industry. In 1913, a New York socialite named Mary Phelps Jacob created the first modern brassiere by tying two handkerchiefs together with ribbon. Jacob's original intention was to cover the whalebone sticking out of her corset, which was visible through her sheer dress. Jacob began making brassieres for her family and friends, and news of the garment soon spread by word of mouth. By 1914, Jacob had a patent for her design and was marketing it throughout
William Phelps (colonist) probated on July 1, 1637, named as overseer of his estate his nephew, William Phelps, likely placing William Phelps of Tewkesbury in England and not across the Atlantic in the Massachusetts Bay. More recent expert research has identified William Phelps of Crewkerne, Somersetshire, England as the immigrant. Phelps was married twice: (1) Mary (surname unknown), buried in England in 1626, and (2) Anne Dover, who accompanied him and children from both marriages to Dorchester, Massachusetts, a town later annexed by the city of Boston. The names and birthdates of the children correspond to the records later found in the American