Figure 1.--This boy holding a toy boat was from Baltimore, Maryland. He wears a huge floppy bow. It is not as wide as some whave seen by it baically covers the whole top part of his outfit. The portrait looks to have been taken in the 1890s.

Floppy bows came in all different sizes. We note small, medium, and and lkarge, even huge floppy bows. The larger bows were worn with Fauntleroy blouses and suits. They are probably the best rememberd floppy bows. These large bows are perhaps the most remarkable boy's garments in American fashion history. And there was a direct relation with collars. Large floppy bows went wiuth large collars and visa versa. These bows in fact came in many different sizes. The large bows were just part of the story. Some were so small that they look more like bow ties. The popularity of the different sizes varied over tiume. Small narrow ribbon bows were common in the 1870s and early-80s. They were tied in various ways. We continue to see relatively small bows even in the early 1880s. A good example is Eddie Wilson, a New York boy in 1882. We note Frank Bigelow wearing a narrow ribbon bow in 1882. This all changed framrically with Mrs. Burnett and Little Lord Fauntleroy. Mothers using their sons as fashions platforms began a satorial arms race. And floppy bows and huge lace and rulled collars were a key element in that effort. Some floppy bows were so large that they they also seem to engulf the boy. This was especially the case with the smaller boys wearing them. And of course there were many bows in between these two extremes. Its somewhat difficult to size these bows in numerical terms. When using the photographic record it is easier to assess the bows in relative terms, thsat is the size in terms of the bows wearing them. Some floppy bows did not even cover the collar. Others streached from shoulder to shoulder and even beyond.

Small Floppy Bows

These bows in fact came in many different sizes. And the first floppy bows we see were very small and worn with equally small collars. We begin to see substantial numbers in the 1870s. Some floppy bows did not even cover the collar, but generally these small bowswere worn with small collars. They bows began to reolce stocks (1860s) and were almost all small at first. The popularity of the different sizes varied over time, but we do not seee a simple or gradual progression from small to medium to large. We begin to firstt see small bow in the 1869s. Small narrow ribbon bows were common in the 1870s and early-80s. They were tied in various ways. We continue to see relatively small bows even in the early 1880s. A good example is Eddie Wilson, a New York boy in 1882. We note Frank Bigelow wearing a narrow ribbon bow in 1882.

Medium Floppy Bows

There were many bows in between these two extremes of small and large bows. Its somewhat difficult to size these bows in numerical terms. When using the photographic record it is easier to assess the bows in relative terms, that is the size in terms of the bows wearing them. Others streached from shoulder to shoulder and even beyond. We see some medium-sized bow in the 1880s, but Mrs Burnetts book very quickly propelled floppy bows from small to large sizes (1885). Mos of the medium bows we see are in the early-20th century beginning a few years after the turn-of-the 20cenbtury. and we continue to see these medium-sized bows into the 1930s. While the small bows were the first to appear, it is the medium bows that were worn for the longest period and were the last to be worn.

Large Floppy Bows

The larger floppy bows were of course worn with Fauntleroy blouses and suits. They are probably the best rememberd floppy bows. These large bows are perhaps the most remarkable boy's garments in American fashion history. And there was a direct relation with collars. Large floppy bows went with large collars and visa versa. The large bows were just part of the story. Some were so small that they look more like bow ties. This all changed both dramrically and suddenly when Mrs. Burnett published Little Lord Fauntleroy. Mothers using their sons as fashion platforms began a satorial arms race without precedent. And floppy bows and huge lace and rulled collars were a key element in that effort. We do not see really large floppy bows before the mid-80s. Some floppy bows were so large that they they also seem to engulf the boy. This was especially the case with the smaller boys wearing them. But we see some older boys wearing giant bows and collars as well. The large bows are most associated with Fauntleroy outfits, but were not exclusively worn with Fasuntleroy suits and blouses. The life span of these large bow is basically the same as the Fauntleoy craze (1885-1905). The boy here, we think in the 1890s wears a good example of a large floppy biw. By the late 1900s we no longer see mant really large floppy bows.

Created: 9:19 PM 9/3/2008
Last updated: 5:42 PM 9/17/2015