Figure 1.--This unidentified boy was photographed at the Schneider studio in Green Bay, Wisconsin. We note quite a few studios operated by German immigrants yet photography was much more common in America than Germany. The boy has some kind of award. We think it may becfir learning Bible verses. Notice the bkko, perhaps a hymnal at hos elbow. He looks to be about 12-13 years old, about the time Lutheran boys a girls did their confirmation. (Many German immigrants were Lutherans and many settled in the Upper Mid-West.) The boy wears a single-breasted jacket with very small lapels. Notice the knee pants. They are no longer at calf level, but still below the knees. Also notice the low-cut shoes, high-top shoes were more common at the time. The portrait is undated, but was probanly taken in the eraly-80s.

Early American knee pants were often quite long, far longer than knee level. They often looked rather like long pants that the boy had outgrown. Some early knee pants even approached ankle length. A good example is a Boston boy, probably in the late 1860s. The pants hem might come down to the boy's ankles. Knee pants cut at calf-level were much more common and widely worn in the 1860s, 70s, and even the early-80s. We are not entirely sure what they were called at the time because actual knee length pants were rarely seem. The cut began to become shorter in the 1880s. We see pants of variable lenth, some where between the calf and the knee. Actual knee-length pants do not begin to appear in any numbers until the mid-1880s. Thes chronological changes are difficult to fillow precisely because so few portraits were dated. As best we can tell, age ws not a factor here, but our archive is still too limited to make a vaid assessment. Knee-length pants became standard wear in the 1890s. This required hosiery companies to make long stockings in longer lengths. The shift occurred gradually. We begin to see lengths betweem calf and knee length by the early-80s and they grdually became more common. . Almost all American boys wore knee pants with long stockings except when going barefoot. The knee length continued into the 1900s until knee pants were generally replaced by knicketrs by the 1910s. Knickers in the 1910s and 20s continued this knee-length convention. We believe the same basic leg-length shift occured in Europe. We also see similar shifts in girls' dress hem lines as well.

Ankle Length

Americasn boys in gthe first half of the 19th century wore long pants. Even in the 1860s, long pants tended to be common even for younger boys. The shorter lengths appear to be a European uinfluence. probably an English influence. We are not sure asbout France. You get the impression that American manufasctirers were not quite shirt about making shortened-length pants. Thus we see pants only shortened a few inches. And we see this mostly in fashionable northeastern cities. Rural boys were less likely to wear them. In addition, the spread of fashion was not so fast before the major mail order companies began operating (1870s). By the 1890s, however, fashion trends only lagged slightly at most a year before reaching the most remote areas in America. Early American knee pants were often quite long, far longer than knee level. They often looked rather like long pants that the boy had outgrown. That may ve un part the case, but wealso see opabts putoisefully cut at abnkle level. And almost all the examples come ftom the 1860s abnd early-70s. Some early knee pants even approached ankle length. A good example is a Boston boy, probably in the late 1860s. The pants hem might come down to the boy's ankles.

Calf-Length

Knee pants cut at calf-level were much more common and widely worn in the 1860s, 70s, and even the early-80s. Some knee pabys were cut even longer in the 1860s. By the 1879s we seen them being standarduzed at calf level. This was stull quite common in the 1880s, but by the 1890s, knee length became standard, even for older boys. In fact age dies notv seem to hacve bveen the criteruion fir trhe length if knee opabts, it was more the cionvention and fashions of the day. We are not entirely sure what they were called at the time because actual knee length pants were rarely seem. in the 1860s and 70s, so knee pants seems an unlikely term. The cut began to become shorter in the 1880s. We see pants of variable lenth, some where between the calf and the knee.

Knee Length

Actual knee-length pants do not begin to appear in any numbers until the mid-1880s. Thes chronological changes are difficult to fillow precisely because so few portraits were dated. As best we can tell, age ws not a factor here, but our archive is still too limited to make a vaid assessment. Knee-length pants became standard wear in the 1890s. This required hosiery companies to make long stockings in longer lengths. The shift occurred gradually. We begin to see lengths betweem calf and knee length by the early-80s and they grdually became more common. . Almost all American boys wore knee pants with long stockings except when going barefoot. The knee length continued into the 1900s until knee pants were generally replaced with knickers by the 1910s. Knickers in the 1910s and 20s continued this knee-length convention. We believe the same basic leg-length shift occured in Europe. We also see similar shifts in girls' dress hem lines as well, but earlier than in the United States. .

Created: 8:44 PM 1/25/2012
Last updated: 6:28 PM 10/17/2022