How to Dress for Bathing, 1881

"Flannel is the best material for a bathing costume, and gray is regarded as the most suitable color. It may be trimmed with bright worsted braid. The best form is the loose sacque, or the yoke waist, both of them to be belted in, and falling about midway between the knee and the ankle; an oilskin cap to protect the hair from the water, and merino socks to match the dress, complete the costume." 

John H. Young, Our Deportment (1881)

Hit the beach 1880s-style! Swaddled in a gray flannel sack, oilskin cap, and merino socks, you'll avoid sunburn. The only drawback is that other swimmers may mistake you for a walrus.

How to Bathe in the Sea, 1880

"To prepare the skin for the cold sea bathing, it would be well, before taking a dip in the sea, to have on the previous day a warm salt water bath... The bather, as soon as he enters the water, ought instantly to wet his head; this may be done either by his jumping at once from the machine into the water, or, if he have not the courage to do so, by plunging his head without loss of time completely under the water." 

Pye Henry Chavasse, Advice to a Wife (1880)

So, the bathing machine: you step into a horse-drawn shed in your street clothes, and it conveys you directly into the sea, where you emerge like some kind of aquatic superhero. Yes please. I'm skipping the warm salt water bath, though.