Figure 1.--Berets were never worn commonly worn by American boys. The younger boys that wore them were normally wearing dressy outfits--never casual clothing. Almost always American boys wore white or cream colored berets with dressy clothes. Slightly older boys might wear a peaked cap with dressy outfits. I am not sure why the light-colored berets were preferred, especially as French boys never wore white berets.

Some American boys during the late 19th century wore "tams" withs dressy outfits. They were much larger than modern berets and normally worn with dressy outfits. The classic beret was worn by small boys in America during the 1920s-40s as part of a dressy outtfit. Berets were never worn by American boys as casual clothing. Berets were occassionaly worn during the 1950s, but not commonly. Almost always American boys wore white or cream colored berets with dressy clothes. Slightly older boys might wear a paeked cap with dressy outfits. I am not sure why the light-colored berets were preferred in America. Notably French boys did not wear white berets. This convention in America was very common for boys who wore them. The beret was, however, generally considered in America as girls' headwear. As we have seen in many other instances, garments considered as girlish are usually rejected by boys. American girls wore berets in a wider range of colors. Girls wore them extensively in the 1920s-30s, calling them "tams". The beret was little seen in the United States after the 40s as boys wears, until some Scout groups adopted red berets during the 1960s.

A French reader writes, "Beautifull look! One could believe that these boys were French, except that French boys did not wear white berets. I find this image rather strange. Sometime the American taste is realy tender, but other times (usually) it seems rather hard."

Created: December 6, 2002
Last edited: December 6, 2002