Figure 1.--The Gallerie Lafayette department store in Paris during 1908 offered both long and knnepants suits for boys.
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Figure 1.--The Gallerie Lafayette department store in Paris during 1908 offered both long and knnepants suits for boys. |
The Galery Lafayete, a large Paris Department store, on one page in one page of
Après offered five different outfits inclusing suits. The suits features both keepants or long pants. Parents could select the suit type and then decide on either long pants or kneepants. The suits suggest that boys through age 11 wore juvenile styles, but some time between 12 and 15 began wearing more adult suit
y styles and long pants.
The ad copy reads, "Costume veston croisé en draperie haute nouveauté, gilet droit, pantalon mode. Sans précédent. 13 et 14 ans: Fr 41. 15 à 17 ans: Fr 45. 18 et 19 ans: Fr 49. Pantalon seul en nouveauté, qualité supérieure: Fr 13, Fr 15. Fr 16. Gilet droit en
tissu nouveauté, dispositions mode: Fr 8.75, Fr 9.50, Fr 10.00. This translates as : "Suit with crossing jacket. (This means that one side of the jacket came over (crossed) the other. I think that means double breasted.) Made in drapery which was a sort of non-descriprt serge, high innovation, right waistcoat, fashionable pants, unprecented prices 13 and 14 years: Fr 41. 15 to 17 yerars: Fr 45. 18 and 19 years: Fr 49. Fashionable pants alone higher quality: Fr 13 - Fr 15 - Fr 16. Straight waistcoat in [novelty?] fabric, fashionable arrangement: Fr 8.75 - Fr 9.50 - Fr 10.00.
The ad copy reads: "Pardessus droit en beau tissu anglais, beige ou gris, entièrement doublé chine. 5 et 6 ans : Fr 24, 7 à 9 ans: Fr 25, and 10 à 14 ans: Fr 26. Costume veston droit en belle draperie nouveauté, culotte à poignets. 8 et 9 ans: Fr 29. 10 à 14 ans: Fr
31. 15 et 16 ans: Fr 34. Cape feutre noir mat Fr 6.50." This translates as "Overcoat in good English fabric, beige or grey, full lining china. 5 and 6 years : Fr 24 - 7 to 9 years: Fr 25, and 10 to 14 years: Fr 26. Suit with straight jacket in good [novelty?] serge, kneepants with cuffs at the knees, a band with one button.
The ad copy reads: "Costume chemisette en cheviotte marine ou en tissu nouveauté, double col lingerie, cravate soie, ceinture cuir. 3 à 6 ans : Fr 21. 7 à 9 ans: Fr 22. et 10 à 14 ans: Fr 23. Culotte droite en serge bleue, qualité supérieure. Exceptionnel. toutes
taliles Fr4.90. Cols lingerie blancs ou fantaisie Fr -.60 ou -.80. Béret drap belle qualité. Fr 2.25." This translates as "Shirted suit in blue cheviot or novelty fabric, double linen collar, silk tie, leather belt. 3 to 6 years: Fr 21 - 7 to 9
years: Fr 22 - and 10 to 14 years: Fr 23. Straight pant in blue serge, superior quality, Exceptional. All sizes: Fr 4.90 Linen collars white or fancy: Fr -.60 or -.80
Good quality drapery cap: Fr 2.25
The ad copy reads: "Costume marin anglais en belle serge bleue, double col, cordelière avec sifflet, pantalon a pont. 4 à 6 ans : Fr25. 7 à 9 ans: Fr 26, et 10 à 13 ans: Fr 27. Avec culotte droite, sans pont, 3 Fr de moins. Vareuse anglaise, serge pure laine, doublée chine: 16.75, 18.00, 19.00. Béret en serge assortie, ruban inscription or: Fr 2.75. En drap uni, qualité supérieure: Fr 5.50. This translates as "English sailor suit of good blue serge, double collar. Lanyard with whistle. Pantalon à pont is the French term for long sailor trousers, I believe bell bottoms. Instead of a fly, the piece in front the trousers was buttoned with 1 button in each part of the waist and could be pull down the rest of the trousers stay in place. 4 to 6 years Fr 25. t to 9 years: Fr 26 and 10 to 13 years: Fr 27. With straight kneepants, no (pont?): minus Fr 3. Pure wool serge english short coat, Chinese silk lining: Fr 16.75 - 18.00 - 19.00 Cap in assorted serge, ribbon with gold inscription: Fr 2.75 Plain drapery of superior quality: Fr 5.50
Figure 2.--The Gallerie Lafayette department store in Paris during 1908 offered sailor suit outfits with both kneepants and long pants in sizes up to 14 years of age. |
This was quite an adult-styled suit complete with a top hat, but it was avialable in sizes for boys as young as 12 years of age.
A French reader reports that "culotte sans pont" was the classic kneepants (trousers) worn bu boys during this period in France. The pants had no flies and were butonned in at the waist, rather than held up with a belt. These trouses became shorter later. They were not the most practical trosers as there was no fly. (The lack of a fly did, however, made them less expensive to produve.) Another style of pants, "Norfolk" became popular latser in the 1920s, especially after 1925. They had decorative button at the hem of the pants legs.
Interestingly, the term "béret" seems to be used in the sence of "cap" rather than to specifically mean the taditional French headwear.
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