Figure 1.--This wealthy American family was photographed in the late 1920s. The boy, who looks to be about 10 years old, wears a sport jacket with white knickers. Note that he does not wear white stockings or knee socks with them.

The best know member of the Meyer family is Katherine Graham. Her father made a fortune in chemicals. He left business and government service to buy a declining Washington newspaper. The Washington Post was not at the time very sucessful newspaper. Her mother was a formidable woman in her own right and was known for her political and welfare work. She was friends with people as diverse as Adlai Stevemson and Thomas Mann. Katherine had three sisters and a brother. She grew up in a lively family and from her parents friends met some of the most noted individuals of the day. Although bright she seems incredibly naive as a girl. She knew nothing of money and, at a time when anti-semitism was rife--uaware that she was half Jewish. Her brilliant husband, Phill Grahm, came from modest circumstances, but managed through hard work to get to Harvard. It was Katherine's trouble husband and Katherine herself that built the Post it into one of America's greatest newspapers. Katherine was very close to her brother Bill, who warned her about her husband before she married him.

Bill Meyer as a boy wore white short pants sailor suits and knickers. Bill grew up in the 1920s. We have noted him wearing both a white sailor suit and a sport jacket with white knickers. It is unclear if Bill's white sailor suit was a proper salor suit or a tunic sailor suit. Ot may have been worn with white stockings an strap shoes like his sister's white outfit. A couple years later Bill is seen wearing a sports jacket and white knickers. It is unclear what kind of hosiery he wears. It looks almost like he doesn't have socks on--but HBC believes that in the 1920s this would be unlikely for a boy from a rich family. A HBC readers believes that he is wearing hosiery. He writes, "Notice how much of a difference there is in the color of his skin, versus the color below the knickers." The question then becomes what kinds of hose. To HBC, it looks like long stockings rather than kneesocks.

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Created: November 24, 2001
Last updated: November 28, 2001