Vintage American Boy's Knickers and Suspender Shorts (1920s)


Figure 1.--e note a of vintage American boy's wool knickers which we believe date to the 1920s. The lot was being sold at Moorpark, but we are not sure where that is. The lot included two pairs of knickers. One was suspender knickers. There was also a flat cap. Click on the image for a back view.

We note a of vintage American boy's wool knickers which we believe date to the 1920s. The lot was being sold at Moorpark, but we are not sure where that is. The lot included a pair of hounds tooth wool knickers with a button and zipper fly for closure. There are side pockets. They measure 23 inches long, with a 13 inch inseam and 22 inch waist. The second pair of pants are made of wool with suspender straps which can be removed. We have not noted a lot of suspender knickers so this is interesting. Note that the suspender staps buttoned on and could be removed. There are snaps for closure and a small back pocket. They measure 17 inches long, with a 10 inch inseam and a 24 inch waist. We assume they were probably worn by the same boy, presumably at different times as the sizes are slightly different. There was also a flat cap with these knickers, presumably worn by the same boy.

Chronology

We note a of vintage American boy's wool knickers which we believe date to the 1920s. They could have also been worn in the 1930s, but we think the 1920s more likely.

Location

The lot was being sold at Moorpark, but we are not sure where that is.

Individual

We assume that both pair of pants here were probably worn by different boys. The sizes seem very different. Perhaps there were borthers. There was also a flat cap with these knickers, which would have been worn at the same time. We are unsure just what age boys would have worn these garments. was.

Suits

Before the 1920s, knickers were commonly purchased with a jacket or coat as part of a suit. This included people of all social classes. Nore that even newboys before World war I often were wearing suits. It is unclear to us if the knickers here were part of a suit or not. After the 20s it became increasingly common to buy pants sepasrately as boys began to wear more casual clothes.


Figure 1.-Here are the bittons on the back of the suspender pants. Click on the image to see the knicker buttons.

Pants in Lot

The lot included two pairs of knickers. They were a different size and styled differently. Both were wool knickers.

Houndstooth knickers

a pair of hounds tooth wool knickers with a button and zipper fly for closure. There are side pockets. They measure 23 inches long, with a 13 inch inseam and 22 inch waist.

Suspender pants

The second pair of pants are made of wool with suspender straps which can be removed. We have not noted a lot of suspender knickers so this is interesting. Actually after looking at the pants, they seem to be suspender short pants rather than knickers. There are no buttons or buclkes at the knee to close them. The tapopering, however, looks more like knickers. Note that the suspender staps buttoned on and could be removed. There are snaps for closure and a small back pocket. They measure 17 inches long, with a 10 inch inseam and a 24 inch waist. The buttons on the suspender pants look unusually small.

Suspender Pants

Suspender pants meaning the straps in the same material as the pants became popular in the 1920s. Suspebders were widely worn in the early 20th century, but these were separate elasticised suspenders. The innovation of suspender straps in the same material as the pants became quite popular after World War I (1914-18). It seems to have been more popular in Germany than America. We have not noted suspender knickers very commonly. Suspender shorts and longs were more common. Also the suspenders were often sewn to the back of the pants rather than buttoning to the back like the pants here.

Flat Cap in Lot

Also in this lot was a wool cap with an adjustable buckle on the back and small snap brim. The inside is lined in satin with a leather hat band. It measures 22 inches inside circumference. This is an excellent close-up view of the cap style that was so widely worn by American boys in the early 20th century, especially in the 1920s and 30s. These caps had a range of stylistic variations. This is a classic example of a flat cap.








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Created: 10:03 PM 2/6/2005
Last updated: 10:03 PM 2/6/2005