*** United States boys clothes : families alphabetical listings








United States Families: Alphabetical Listings

18th century family
Figure 1.--John S. Copley painted the four Gore Children about 1755. We know nothing about the family at this time. They clearly was a very affluent family. Note the rich fabrics and elegant clothing. The painting is now at the Winterthur Museum. The painting shows Sammy Gore (on the right)who has not yet been breeched. His hair is combed back from his forehead and he has fashionable side curls worn with a queue. This was how some men wore their hair. His older brother, however, has his hair done differently.

We have the names of some of the family images we have found. Unfortunately many are unidentified. So we can only list some of them alphabetically. Of course with paintings the families are usually known. With photographs there are many old images that are not identified. It is useful to cross reference the famililies for which we have the names alphabetically. There are many more families listed in the chronological sections. And of course family names can be searched in the biography sections.

B

Bjerke family (Minnesota, 1920s)

Bjerke is not a family name we recognize, but has found it is a Norwegian name. The Bjerke's and Norwegians settled in the upper Northwest, especially Minnesota. Here we see the family all dressed up, perhaos in a country outing after church. They may have lived in Minneapolis, or perhaps a family farm near Minneapolis. We have no details about the family except for the name of the grandfather--Ole Bjerke. It comes from a famnily album originating in Allamakee County, Iowa, primarily Lansing, and most likely owned by Emma Nelson. Nearly all people are of Norwegian Norway origin. Families include N. A. (Nels) Nelson and family of Lansing, Emma Nelson, Walter T. Nelson, Nora Nelson, Klara Nelson, Wilbert Nelson, and Uncle Mike Nelson, the last being from Canton, South Dakota. We note the Elert Bjerke of Minnesota and Helen and Wilma Bjerke of Minnesota. There is no further details about the Bjerke family here. Father presumably took the snapshot. We do not know why mother was not included, we suspect she was a Nelson that Bjerke married. The photograph is not dated, but we would guess was taken in the early-1920s. The clothing, especially the cilklar-buttoning jackets, short pants and beige long stockings suggest the 1920s. Besides the grandfather, we see six children, four boys and two girls. They look to be about 5-15 years old. The girls both wear light summer dresses and the trees in the background suggest early spring. The old boys wear lapel suits with ties. the younger boys wear short oants, collar buttoning suits with Norfolk styling. Notice the floppy bows.

Bryan Family (Illinois, 1860s-70s)

We have some portraits of the Bryan family, a wealthy Chicago family. We do not know much about gthem, except they were wealthy and traveled to Englasnd. We have some CDV portraits of the boys in the family. Infortunately the portraits are not dated, but they look like the 1860s-70s to us.

C

Chifa Family (1840s)

The image here is a mother and son, Sarah L. and William Chifa (sp?). Unfortunately we have no information about the family. There is, however, information associated with this Daguerreotype. We have no idea where it was taken. All we know for sure is Sarah died in 1857. The boy's less than stylish clothes suggest that it was not in one of the developing large northeaster cities where people dressed more stylishly. We are also unsure about the date the portrait weas taken. The clothing suggests the 1840s to us, but the early 50s is possible. The boy looks to be about 11. years old. He has a shirt with a small collar and he wears a stock. He also wears a jacket unlike we have seen before. We see some influence of the frock coats worn by men as well as a hink of the smocks worn by laborors. Perhaps readers will know more about the style. Presumably it is a jacket that the boy's mother made at home. There were no readt maf=de clothes yet. This may have been a style worn in the 1840s. Or it may have been a more unique style. The mother wears a bonnet.We see quite a few women with bonnets in these early poertaits. We are not entirely sure why.

Coe Family (Connecticut, 1860s)

Here we have what looks like a 1860s photo album with 37 CDVs. It is an excellent example of a period family photo album. It came from the Coe Mansion in Meriden Connecticut. Thus we assume it represents images of the Coe family. There are many photos of babies, children, and adults. Unfortunately the album is not dated. It looks like the 1860s to us. Curiously none of the men wear uniforms. This means that it might date from the late 60s or even the early 70s. The clothing looks to us more like the 60s. The lack of uniforms may reflect the fact the men of many wealthy families did not participate in the War and even when the draft was instituted, bought their way out of it. Here we just do not know. None of the CDVs are identified. Thus we can only categorize them by approximate age and outfits. Some of the children of course may have been photographed more than once at different ages.

D

Dailey family (New York, 1890s)

This is the children of William Nelson Potter Dailey of Schenectady, New York. Two of the children are named. Helen is at the left and Vincent is at right. The other two nmes or illegible. They look to be about 3-11 years old. He was the Brigidier General of the 2nd NY Brigade, U.B.B.A. (United Boys Brigade of America). This was a church related youth group founded in Scotland before the Boy Scouts. He was the minister for the Amsterdam Reform Church in Schenectady. The Boy's Brigade does not appear to have been as popular in America as Britain. We see only a few examples in the photogrphic record. But we see here that it did exist. The children are all dressed in white. The girls wear white dresses, both long a short sleeves. The boys also wears white knee pants outfits. The youngr boys wearas a blouse with a white bow. Vincent wears a white sailor blouse. The portrait is undated, but we would guess was taken in the late-1890s. Notice how mother has carefully donethe children's hair. And note the younger boy has a center hair part.

G

Gillis Garnes (North Carolina, 1890s)

The Garnes family were a prosperous black family at the turn-of-the 20th century. At the time, most blcks still lived in the rural South. Many were sharecroppers, but quite a number owned their land. This photo was taken near Henderson, North Carolina. It shows Gillis Garnes, his wife and their 17 children, aged 3 to 28. The photo was taken about 1899 while they went to the sunday worship at the Baptist Church where they belonged. They lived in Brodie, about 20 miles from Henderson. Gillis Garnes is about 50 years old. His wife is about 48 years old. The oldest child is a daughter who is 28 years and the youngest is also 3-year old daughter. Mother is holding the youngest daughter and father is holding the youngest boy. They were strong Baptists, 13 of the family were Church members, presumably the little ones had not yet joined. We are not sure about Garnes did not a living, but given the large family and where they lived, we would guess that he was a farmer, almost certainly a land owner given the way the family is dressed and the fact that the children are being educated. One of his sons is A.J. Garnes, the tall man in the last row at the right. He and a sister attended Shaw University. He apparently was a teacher, but that is not entirely clear. The Southern states like North Carolina commonly did not fund public education well, especilly schools for black children. When he returned hom in the evening he also taught the younger children. A Professor Charles F. Meserve wrote the family up in the Baptist Home Mission Monthly. Some of the men appArently served in the Spanish American War (1898-99).

Gore Family (Virginia?, about 1755)

John S. Copley painted the four Gore Children about 1755. We know nothing about the family at this time. The modern Gore family is associated with Tennessee, but in the 18th century Virginia was more likely. They clearly was a very affluent family. Note the rich fabrics and elegant clothing. The painting is now at the Winterthur Museum. The painting shows Sammy Gore (on the right)who has not yet been breeched. His hair is combed back from his forehead and he has fashionable side curls worn with a queue. This was how some men wore their hair. His older brother, however, has his hair done differently. Note the older broter's long coat and long vest. Their father would have worn a very similar outfit. Also notice the sundued colors. The girls and Sammy have bright-colored clothing. Also note Sammy's dress. There does not seem to be any boy's clothing in between the older brother's adult outfit and Sammy's dress.

H

Henry Pelham (Massachusettes?, 1760s)

Copley painted his younger half-brother, Henry Pelham, twice. One is an informal sketch shows Henry at about age ? reading. He then painted Hencry again in a more formal work at about age 15 years with a flying squirrel. This is a very well known Copley work painted in 1765. Both of these works are at Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Copley painted the formal portrait of Henry for display in London to show off his skills. There are several aspects of the picture included to showcase his abilities, such as the satin cloth. This is a particularly difficult fabric to illustrate because of the sheen. here is , however, much more in the portrait such as the minute links of chain. And there is a partially full glass of water, another difficult item to illustrate. Now art historians believe that he would have painted his brother with hair styles and clothing that would have appealed to the London public. Thus we are not entirely sure if we are looking at how American boys dressed or fashionable English boys. Henry has his hair combed straight back from his the forehead. At the sides it covers his ears. Its seems rather matural and not carefully styled like that of some boys.

I

Iverson Family (South Dakota, 1973)

The Iverson family was a farm family. America by the 1970s was mostly urban, but agriculture was still an important part of the family. Here both farm families and corporate farms were important. The Iversons had a family ranch in South Dakota, a largely rural state where agriculture and cattle rearing was a major part of the economy. The family snapshot was taken in 1973 on their ranch near Holabird, Hyde County. It shows the Iverson family, the parents and their two boys who lived with them on the farm. Notice the modern looking ranch-style hoime. We do not know the boys' names. Along with them are two more fashionably dressed teenagers. They are not identified, possibly relatives or friends who were visiting from town. It was an obviously hot day. On the northern plains it gets hot during the summer and bitter cild during the winter. Two boys wear tank tops and one no shirt at all. Short pants were becomoing more popular for American boys in the 1970s. The oldest boy wears trendy summer shorts and tube socks. Short pants and tube socks were all the rage in the 1970s, in part because of the growing popularity of basketball and soccer.

M

The McIntyre Family (1890s)

This cabinet card shows the children of John and Christina Mitchell McIntyre: Helen, Janet, John, Mary and James. They look to be about 1-13 years old. John wears a knWe are not entirely sure who is who, but suspect the older girls probanly left o right are Helen and Janet and the baby is Mary. The boys are John and James. Helen wears a fancy dress. This was common at the time. Janet wears a plain white dress. John wears a patterned knee pants suit. Loud patterns were commin in the 1890s. He has what looks like an Eton collar, although you can't tell if it has rounded or pointed tips because it is covered by a modest floppy bows. James wears a striped tunic suit with a fancy collar. The cabinet card is undated, but the mount suggesrs the 1890s. The studio was Magovern & Baker in Saratoga, New York

Miller Family

A HBC reader has provided here family infornation. Charles and Sophia are my ancestors that came over to the U.S. from Sweden. Both of their families lived in Sweden for centuries prior to emigrating. I'm not sure if you know how the naming system in Sweden worked back then, but your last name was the father's first name followed by son or dotter, depending on if you were male or female. Therefore, Charles was known as Carl Oscar Danielsson in Sweden, because his father's name was Daniel. He came from Ryningsnäs in Småland. He was the 2nd born son, after Nils, therefore he did not inherit any of the farm as that would go to the oldest son. I believe this is why he emigrated sometime around 1871 and went to Illinois. At some point after Carl Oscar came over to the U.S. he changed his last name to Miller. I believe it was because the farm he lived on in Sweden was called Kvarntorpet, which means the mill farm in English. Sophia Anna's last name in Sweden was Jansdotter. She came from Lungsund in Värmland around 1880 and went to Illinois. Carl Oscar and Sophia met in Illinois. I believe they both had relatives that came to the U.S. before them. They married in 1883 in Illinois and started a family. Allen Frederick Miller Sr. was the oldest and he is my great grandpa. Nine more children followed, so 10 altogether, 8 surviving to adulthood. Rhoda passed away as an infant and Gilbert passed away of Diphtheria at age 9. Carl Oscar had a horse and dray business, which is basically what a taxi or uber service would be today. They lived in Rock Island, IL. By 1905 the family had moved to Minnesota to try their hand at farming. They continued to do this on land in both Minnesota and North Dakota. However, by the time the family moved, Allen Sr. was already an adult and living his own life in Illinois, so he did not move with the rest of the family. He worked on a boat on the Mississippi river for a while before starting a grocery store. He married Olga Schroeder and they had 3 boys, Richard, Allen Jr., and Robert. Allen Jr. is my grandpa. The family had a two story brick building. The store was on the bottom and they lived on the 2nd floor. This was also in Rock island, IL. Allen Jr. got his degree in business from Augustana College and worked for the same insurance company his entire life, except for a short time during WWII. During that time he was in the Army Air Corp.

William Mosley Family (1791)

Here we see a Charles Mosley with his mother, the wife of William Mosley. Charles wears a classic, bright red skeleton suit, a clear illustration of how European fashions dominated American fashions at the time, at least that of the European elite. Also note Charles' long hair. The portrait was painted in 1791 by Ralph Earl, and is located at the Yale Univ. Art Gallery. The subjects are Mrs. William Mosely and her son Charles. We know nothing more about the Mosleys. We note some portraits of his portraits being attributed to his son Ralph E. W. Earl. His son was also an important early American portraitist.

R

Ratchford Family (Pennsylvania, about 1930)

This family portrait shows the Rathchford boys from Duryea, Pennsylvania. Duryea was a town in the athracyte coal area of wesrern Pennsylvania close to Pittsburgh. It is now parrt of the greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area. We know nothing about the family, but Ratchford would seem to be a family of English origins. There are three boys who look to be about 2-11 yeats old. We do not know their Christian names. They are rather informally dressed. The younger boy wears a button-on suit. The middle boy wears a kind of rughbt shirt with the buttonly only half way down the font. He has self-belted short panrs. Notice hiow he has buttoned his collar. The older boy with combed-back hair wears aegukar shirt with knickers. All three wear low-cut oxford shoes. The hosiery they wear is interesting. The portrait is undated, but we would guess was taken around 1928-32.

S

Schlesinger Family (New York?, 1860s)

This leather family photographic album is a good example of the albums that appeared in American aprlors during the 1860s. This one is a front side latch closing book. It had about 25 pages showing two images on each page. It measures 9" x 8" x 3". Some albums were larger and showed four photographs on a page. This family album contains a collecton of tin-types and a few CDVs of many different family members, including many of the children. One portrait is identified Anna and Emily Schlesinger. We thus assume the photographs are all of the Schesinger, but the other portraits are not specifically identified. The clothing suggests that the portraits came from the 1860s. One portrait is dated 1863. We do not know where the Schlesingers lived, but we think New Yprk is a drstinct possibility because the album was being sold in upstate New York.

Scudder family (India, 1910s)

The photo shows the three Scudder siblings. The Scudders were an American family living in India. The photo was taken in Ranipet, Tamil Nadu, during 1910s. They seem to be a home, perhaps a family compound. We are not sure why the family is in India. Perhaps they are missionary children. There were businessmen in India as well. A missionary famiky seems more likely. The two older boys wear blouses and ties with with what looks like knickers and knee pants. The younger bioy wears a Fauntkeroy styled outfit. Their sister wears a white dress with twin hair bows. Allm of the boys and probably the firl as well are barefoot. Notice the pith helmets they all have.

George Segrum Family (1870s)

This is a cabinet card portrait of George and Elizabeth Segrum and their two children, Celia and John. We are not positive Celia is a child, there is quite an age difference between the two. We have But for the names the small child could easily be thought to be a girl. Notice the crossed legs. The studio looks to be Jos. Reynolds, but we can not make out where he was located. John looks to be avout 6 years old abnd is wearing a dress with a lrge white collar. We are not sure about the date, but would guess the 1870s or early-80s, perhaps readeres will have some thoughts here.

Stewart Children (New Jersey?, 1770s)

Charles Wilson Peale traveled widely in the middle colonies, developing a reputation as a highly skilled portratist. He painted portraits of numerous colonial officials and important merchants. He did his first portrait of Gerorge Washington (1772). The portrait of the "Stewart Children" may have been made during this period, although I do not have details at this time.

Swayze Family (Unknown state, about 1890)

This studio cabinet card portarit is dentified as the Geo. Swayze family. There are six children, the mom and dad, all of whom have a distinct family resemblance. There are two older girls, or perahaps an older teen ager and a maiden aunt. There are three young boys, probably about 5-11 years old. There is also a baby who might be either a girl or a boy. They are all wearing their best outfits and look very serious. The younger boys wear collar buttoning jackets. The older boy wears a lapel jacket, but notice how small the lapel is. Not only does the older boy have small lapels, but so does father. The boy in front erars knee pants with black long stockings. We suspect that is brothers do also. The studio and location is not identified. Nor is the date. There are several fashion items indicators here than can be dated. Perhaps the most reliable indicator is the puffed sleeves we see with the lady at the uper right. That is a dress sleeve style popular in the 1890s. But the tenager at the upper left has straight sleeves. This suggest to us the portrait was taken in the early-90s. That is consistent with the other fashion indicatorscwe see here. The studio back drop is meant to show a Victorian parlor.

V


W

Walter Family (Pennsylvania, 1850s)

Thomas Ustick Walter was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during 1804. We know nothing about his childhood. He studied masonry, mathematics, physical science, and the fine arts before finally studying architecture under William Strickland. Walter began practicing architecture (1830). He helped found American Institute of Architects abd served as its second president The United States by 1850 had added many new states and as a result the number of Senators and Congressman had substantially increased. This meant that the existing Capitol building was extremely crowded. President Millard Fillmore appointed Walter as the architect of the Capitol in 1851. He was assigned the task of expanding the building gto better accomodate the Senate and House of Representatives. He had more to do with the modern shape of the building than any other individual. He is responsible for the basic profile of the building instantly recognized around the world. Walter was responsible for the north (Senate) and south (House) wings and the cast-iron dome. He resigned his post in 1865 after most of the work had been completed. have found a daguerreotype of Walter's second family.

West Family (Pennsyvania, 1772)

enjamin West was the first American painter to rise to international prominence. He lead an astonishing life that led him from theAmerican backwoods to the Ebnglish Royal Academy and acceptance into the glitering halls of English aristocracy. This was an amazing accomplishment for a self-taught, largely uneducated colonial boy.

Willets Family (Iowa, 1890s)

Here we see Clara Willet and her four children. The children, three biys and a girk, look to be avout 2-13 years of age. The three boys wear a blouse kilt suit with Fauntleroy trim, and a standard lapel jacket suit. The girl wears a white dress with a huge collar and decorated jacket. The two younger boys have large floppy bows, but short hair. The older boy waers a neck tie. The portrait is undated, but looks like the 1890s to us. Mother looks rather gaunt, but is fashionably dressed. The studio was Jeffryes in Tabor in aouth western Iowa.







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Created: 2:04 AM 7/27/2011
Last updated: 10:16 PM 4/8/2020