Figure 1.--This rural boy was photographed in the Black Forrest area about 1953, he looks to be about 8 years old. He wears long short pants, perhaps corduroys, with woolen long stockings. Click on the image for more details.

Demographic factors involving the wearing of long stockings have varied over time. Our knowledge of 19th century trends is limited, but we have some basic information on the 20th century in which there were differences between fashion trends in urban and rural populations. Long stockings were popular with German mothers to keep their children, bith boys and girls, warm. They were generallu discouraged by the NAZIs diring the 1930s as boys' wear, but continued to be worn, espdecially in rural areas, even in the post-World WarII era when they were little-worn in mot other countries.

19th Century

Long stockings were widely worn by German boys in the late 19th century. We believe that has kneepants became accepted for German children that long stockings became commonly worn. We do not know of differences here between urban and rural children, but our information is limited. Presumbly the new fashion of kneepants were accepted later in rural areas as generally were most new fashions, primarily because of the isolation and lesser exposure to new fashions.

20th Century

Early 20th century (1900-18)

German boys in both urban and rural areas commonly wore long stockings with kneepants. We do noty know at this time if there were important demographic differences. We simply do not have adequate information on German boys's clothes at this time. Short pants and kneesocks were introduced at this time and we be believe were most excepted in urban areas.

Inter-war and World War II era (1919-45)

After World War I, German boys increasingly began wearing kneesocks rather than long stockings--especially older boys. Presumably the older boys found kneesocks more comfortable, but mothers insisted that younger boys who they could more easily control wear them for warmth. Cotton lonf stockings became increasingly prevalent during this period. It was mostly in rural areas that sonme boys continued wearing wool long stockings. German boys began wearing long stockings less in the 1930s and the trend became much more pronounced. The NAZI attitude toard them was one factor here. There were some demographic differences which were more apparent in the 1930s. Long stockings continued to be worn more in rural areas where traditional clothing styles persisted longer than in urban areas. During the NAZI era this difference probably reflected te greater ease in controlling behavior in more urbanized areas.

Post-War era (1947-70)

After the War some younger boys continued wearing long stockings. Older boys in particular no longer wanted to wear them, seeing them as a little on the sissy side. We believe that this was primarily a factor of the greater importance of and exposure to fashion among urban populations. Some boys in the country, in fact, continued wearing them until the early 1960s. By this time fashion destinctions of all kinds between rural and urban populations were decling as mass media, especially television, and individual family cars erased the earlier isolation of rural families. Another factor assocaited with the demise of long stockings was the appearance of tights in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Here we are unsure if there was a difference between rural and urban populations concerning the acceptance of tights. A Canadian reader writes, "You indicate in your analysis that wearing long stockings after World War II was mainly rural and declined because many boys saw long stockings as sissy. issy" How then do you explain that German boys wore tights in the 1960s and 70s and some still do." HBC does not fully understand the transition from long stockings to tights. We have some information on the German tights page. We do not that boys wearing tights was never as common as boys wearing long stockings. Although this is somewhat diffucult to fully assess because boys atthe same time began wearing long pants. As best we can tell, however, noy inly were tights less pervasive than longstockings, they were most commonly wirn by younger boys than was the case of long stockings. Hoefull our German readers will provide a more insightful analysis. A French reader writes, "I am agree with the Canadian reader. If the long stockings in Germany were abandoned , it was probably a matter of practicaly, but absolutly not for a supossetly sissy look. Later the tights became popular, inexpesice and fashionable. They were practical, warm in winter for the boys and todlers wearing short pants. It was then that the American fashion influence reached Europe dictating a new way to see the boy's clothes--only long trouses even if the temperature is burning outside. Except in the very cold region, the tights are not realy necessery with the long trouses. I think it is the reason why the tights are worn by few boys and not a sissy image. Some french boys (like my son did in the 70s) still wore tights under their snow-suit in the mountains." Here HBC must take issue. America never dictated fashion trends to Europe. What happened is that before World War II, Europeam parents chose their children's clothes. After World War II has economic prosperity returned to Europe, parents allowed their children to have more say in their clothing. It was the European children who chose jeans and other American sttles. Now we agree with our French reader that practicality was an issue in the demise of long stockings. However we do not agree that the sissy image was not an issue with both long stockings and later tights. Here the basis for this opinion are the personal accounts submitted by our German readers. See for example an account from Max.