Figure 1.--Here we see boys in a primary school class in 1957. Note the brightly colored print shirts. Notice one boy has a white shirt and tie.

Dutch boys in the early 20th century, as in many other countries, dressed formally. Many boys wore suits with dress shirts and ties. Some boys wore middy blouses. Gradually as the century progressed we note boys wearing more casual shirts. After World war II we begin seeing stripped "T"-shirts and brightly colored print shirts. The 1957 image here from a primary class shows boys wearing some plaid shirts, but also flowery print shirts, almost like Hawaian shirts (figure 1). We do not note these shirts being worn in other European countries.Often a few boys might wear a dress shirt and tie, but most boys dressed quite casually.