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American boys clothes: chronology -- the 1940s United States boys clothes : garments -- pants chronology 1940s
United States Boys' Pants: Chronology--The 1940s
Figure 1.--Here we have waht looks like snapshot taken in the family livingroomm with the pooch. It comes in a studio paper frame, sduggesting a photographrr came to the home. That was unusual at the time. The children look to be about 5-16 years old. The younger boy is dressed up wuth a tie and short pants. His older brother wears a casual shirt and long pants. Their sister wears a rather adult looking long dress. The dealer suggests the poretarit was taken in the 1930s. It looks more like the 40s to us.
Long pants became the standard boys' wear in the 1940s. Some younger boys wore short pants in the 1940s, but knickers which had been imporrant for 3 decades diappeared. Knickers were declining in popularity during the 1930s, especially the late-30s, but still worn by American boys at the beginning of the 1940s. They were still part of the Cub and Scout uniform. This changed rather suddenly during World War II (1941-45). Knickers very quickly went out of style in the early 40s. We are not entirely sure why they disappeared so rapidly in the early-40s, but a combination of fashion trends and Government efforts to reduce cloth consumption were probably the key factors. We note younger boys wearing short pants, including boys at school, this became kess comno by the end of the decade. We see boys dressing up in short pnts suits, going to school in shorts, and of course playing in shorts. A variety of regional, social class, and seasonal factors were involved here. And there were changescduring the decade. We note boys at elementary school wearing shorts in the early 40s, but this was much less common at the end of the decade. There were a variety of differt types of shorts. Shorts were more common in more affluent families. Some boys wore short pants suits rather than knicker suits, but long pants suits were becoming inceasinglu common except for younger boys. Long pants were becoming more popular in the 1930s and this trend continued during the 1940s. After the War long pants became increasingly prevalent. Many boys wore long pants for play, school, and dressing up and this included during warm summer weather. Jeans began to become very popular for younger boys after the War. Here the movies were a factor, but also they were worn by servicemen during the War, especially sailors.
