Montgomery Ward: Windsor Combination Suits (1895)


Figure 1.-- Wards's offered several different Windsor suits. The Ward's ad copy read, "Our Windsor Combination Suits Four pieces, coat, 2 pair knee pants and yacht cap to match. We are not sure what the term Windsor suit means, but appears to refer to the addition of the "yacht cap"..

Here Ward's offered several suits which they called Windsor suits. We have no idea just why they were referred to as Windsor suits. The jacket looks very similar to the double-breasted jackets offered under "Children's suits". The only thing we can think that detinguishes these suits is that they a "yacht cap" came with it. There were two pairs of kneepants with this suit, but that would not have affected the name. We are unsure how a "yacht cap" would have suggested Wundsor other than an association of Windor (Castle) and the British royal family with yachting. We are unsure just what the yacht cap looks like as it is not destinct in the illustration.

Montgomery Ward

Although the word "consumerism" has a modern ring, it was personal concern for an early consumer movement, the "National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry,"That inspired a young traveling salesman named Aaron Montgomery Ward to start the world's first general merchandise mail-order company in 1872. Aaron Montgomery Ward was born on February 17, 1844, in Chatham, New Jersey, to a family whose forebears had served as officers in the French and Indian Wars as well as in the American Revolution. Looking for something more compatible, Monty left home and followed the river to Lake Michigan and the town of St. Joseph, county seat and market for outlying fruit orchards. Chicago was the center of the wholesale dry goods trade and in the 1860s Ward joined the leading dry goods house, Field Palmer & Leiter. As a retailer, Potter Palmer had previously built a reputation for fair dealing. Ward absorbed these principles while working as a clerk for $5. The Chicago City Directories for 1868 through 1870 listed Ward as a salesman for Wills, Greg & Co. and later for Stetthauers & Wineman, both dry goods houses. In 1870, after canvassing territory in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Ward was again footloose. The plan shaping in Ward's mind was to buy goods at low cost for cash. By eliminating intermediaries, with their markups and commissions, and cutting selling costs to the bone, he could offer goods to people, however remote, at appealing prices - for cash. Since its founding in 1872, the company has literally "grown up with America" and has had a major impact on the shopping habits of a nation of consumers. Montgomery Ward & Co. discontinued its catalog operations in 1 985 as part of its restructuring effort to change itself into a modern, competitive chain of value-driven specialty stores, a move which for a time saved the company. week.

Suits in the 1890s

Kilt suits and Little Lord Fauntleroy suits continued to be popular in the 1890s, especiallyb in America. Sailor suits became a standard for boys. The popularity and style varied from country to country. Boys increasingly wire kneepants suits. Knicker style pants were also popular, more in Europe than America. Eton suits were a popular style, but more likely to be worn with long pants. We notice some boys like the Syder brothers wearing the old small jackets, but increasingly in the 1890s boys were wearing full jackets that buttoned to the collar and modern-looking jackets with lapels.

Windsor Suits

Here Ward's offered several suits which they called Windsor suits. We have no idea just why they were referred to as Windsor suits. The jacket looks very similar to the double-breasted jackets offered under "Children's suits". In fact some of the entries refer to style 28 which was one of the styles offered as Children Suits by Ward's. The only thing we can think that detinguishes these suits is that they a "yacht cap" came with it. There were two pairs of kneepants with this suit, but that would not have affected the name. We are unsure how a "yacht cap" would have suggested Wundsor other than an association of Windor (Castle) and the British royal family with yachting. A reader writes, "I'm puzzled also about the term 'Windsor Suit'. But I note that they are double breasted rather than single breasted. Note that all the suits in this category are Style 28 (illustrated at the top of the first column), which means that they are double breasted and have a flap on the breast pocket in addition to three side pockets with flaps--two on the right side, one on the left. I suspect the pocket arrangement together with the double breasted style is what is meant by 'Windsor Suits'."

Yacht Caps

We are unsure just what the yacht cap looks like as it is not destinct in the illustration. It may ell be the cap style that we have not yet been able to identify. We have noted this cap being commonly worn in the 1890s

Ward's Windsor Suits

Wards's offered several different Windsor suits. The Ward's ad copy read, "Our Windsor Combination Suits Four pieces, coat, 2 pair knee pants and yacht cap to match. Note--Always mention size of cap desired. Caps run in sizes from 6 1/4 to 6 7/8 only."
30880: Windsor Combination Suits. Fancy gray mixed hard twist cassimere. Style 28. 4 pieces, coat, 2 pair pants and cap. Each $2.25.
30882: Windsor Combination Suits; small check brown, gra and black wool cassimere. Style 28. Coat, 2 pair pants and cap, 4 to 14 years. Each $2.50.
30884: Medium Brown Mixed Diagonal Cassimere, Windsor combination suits. Style 28. Coat, 2 pair pants and cap. 4 to 14 years. Each $3.00.
30886: Windsor Combination Suits; made of all wool black or navy blue diagonal cheviot; coat, 2 pairs pants and cap. Style 28, 5 to 15 years per outfit. Each $3.50.
30888: Windsor Combination Suits; strictly all wool, black and gray mixed cassimere check pattern. Coat, 2 pair pants and cap. Style 28. How can you beat it? Each $3.75.
30890: Windsor combination Suits; strictly all wool cassimere, neat, brown mixed diagonal pattern. Style 28. 2 pair pants, 1 coat and a cap, 5 to 15 years. Each $4.00.
30892: Windsor Combination Suits. Same as above in fancy gray plaid. Style 28. Each $4.00
30894: Windsor Combination Suits; strictly all wool finished worsted. Diagonal pattern, plain black or navy blue. Coat, 2 pair pants, cap. Style 28. 4 to 15 years. Each $4.75.
30896: Windsor Combination Suits; strictly all wool cassimere, fancy brown mixed plaid. Coat, 2 pair pants and cap. Style 28. Mention size of cap desired. Each $5.00.
30898: Windsor Combination Suits, same as above, in fancy gray mixed plaid. Style 28. Each $5.00."







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Created: 3:05 AM 11/6/2004
Last updated:3:05 AM 11/6/2004