Figure 1.--This American boy wears a blouse, detachable collar and small white floppy bow. He is pictured reading a prayer book. We suspect this was his First Communion outfit. The portrait is undated, but we suspect was taken in the early 1920s, in part because of the low-cut oxford shoes. It was taken by the Heath studio, but we are not sure where the studio was located.

We continue to commonly see large floppy bows in the early 1900s. They were very common in the 1900s and we still see very large ones, but perhaps not quite as large as in the 1890s. And the size began to decline after 1905. The popularity and size of the bows began to decline. A good example is a San Jose boy about 1905. Another example is Charles Dorff about 1905. The bows, however, had began to decline in popularity and size by the end of the decade. We see Harold Howes wearing a moderate-sized bow with an Eton collar and tunic suit in 1905. Floppy bows were clearly much less common by the 1910s. And floppy bows continued to decline in popularity during the 1910s. We see smaller and simplier bows. A good example is Floyd Van Horne about 1915. After World War I, floppy bows were no longer so common, although we do see some younger boys wearing them in the 1920s. They were still worn for special occassions like First Communion. We no longer see floppy bows to any extent by the 1930s.

The 1900s

We continue to commonly see large floppy bows in the early 1900s. They were very common in the 1900s and we still see very large ones, but not quite as large as in the 1890s. And the size began to notably decline after about 1905. We still see boys with floppy boys in the 1900s, but the huge bows were less common. A good example is Frank Schrerer about 1905. The popularity and size of the bows began to decline. A good example is a San Jose boy about 1905. Another example is Charles Dorff about 1905. The bows, however, had began to decline in popularity and size by the end of the decade. We see Harold Howes wearing a moderate-sized bow with an Eton collar and tunic suit in 1905. We see noys wearing them both with Fautleroy collars and wide white collars many are done as Eton collars. We see both colored and white bows as well as msny patterns. They were tied in a variety of knots. They were worn nostly by pre-teen boys, They were mostly worn with suits, but a few boys wore them just with blouses. We are not yet sure about the conmventions, but many of the imges we have found are studio portraits. We notice some boys dressing for for formal occassions such as First Communions.

The 1910s

We still see American boys wearing floppy bows in the 1910s. They were clearly declining in popularity, but quite a number of younger American boys still wore floppy bows in the 1910s. We now do not see many teenagers, even younger teenagers, wearing these bows. Floppy bows were clearly much less common by the 1910s, but they were still worn by younger boys to some extent when dressing up. This was especially true early in the decade. We see fewer boys by the end of the decade. We also no longer see the huge bows we once saw. A major change was the suits which were worn with floppy bows. Fauntleroy suits were no longer a major style. Nor do we see the blouses wuth large collars. We see boys wearing regular suits with floppy bows. A good example is Floyd Van Horne about 1915. We alsisee floppy bpws worn with blouses, but not the fanvy blouses with large collars. An example is an unidentified boy, probably about 1915. Another good example is the the Nethery boys. Floppy bows continued to decline in popularity during the 1910s. We see smaller and simplier bows and younger boys wearing them.

The 1920s

After World War I, floppy bows were no longer so common, although we do see some younger boys wearing small occassions in the 1920s. They still might be worn worn for very special occassions like First Communion.

The 1930s

We no longer see floppy bows to any extent by the 1930s.

Created: 11:09 PM 12/22/2007
Last updated: 6:23 PM 4/25/2011