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school uniform: United States -- individual schools Overland Park School
U.S. School Clothes: Overrland Park School (Overland Park, Kansas)
Figure 1.-- Here we see the 7th grade class, we believe in the very early-1930s. The late-1920s is possible. The 7th grade means children 12-13 years old. In farm areas sometimes sloghtly older children weere involved. Many primary schools at the time ran through the 8th grade. A lot of kids did not continiue on to high school which began with the 9th grade. We see a typical sized class, 36 children. We see what looks to at least 6 farm children with boys wearing overalls. This was very common in the 1930s, but disappeared entirely after World War II (1941-45). We see a lot of white shirts, still mostly long-sleeved shirts. Only two boys wear ties. Most of the boys are in the back, but two of the boys in the front are wearing knickers, one with knee socks and the other with long stockings.
Agriculture dominated the Kansas economy until after World War II. It was one of the most important farm states. We have found some class portraits from the Overland Park Elementary School. Overland Park was a town just south of Kansasa City, the largest city in Kanasa located on the Missouri border. As a result we see farm kids at the school until after World War II. We are not sure how the name developed, but suspect it had to do with the Oregon Trail which began in Independence Missouri on the Mississippi River and moved east from there through what is now Kansas City. Kansas City became the largest city of the Planes. As the song about farmners and cowboys goes--'Everything is up to date in Kansas City'. Now the city is more of a Kansas City suburb. The class portaits before World Wat II show the farm imprint with quite a few boys weraring overalls. After the War, the differences between farm and city dress disappeared very rapidly.
Here we see a younger class from Overland Park, we think in the 1920s. It is a fairly lsrge class -- 32 children. The grade is not identified, but we would guess a 2nd or 3rd grade class. It looks to have been taken in the 1920s. It clearly is taken after World War I and the knickers with black long stockings is a good indicator of the 1920s. We see a lot of white shirts. Three boys wear suits. Several others wear ties. Only one boy wears overalls. We see a later class portraits with more boys wear overalls. The boys we can see in the front all wear knickers with long stockings. We don't see the girls wearing hair bows which were virtually universal in the 1910s. Thhe girls wear dresses. We inky see one girl with a blouse and skirt. The girls wear both socks and long stockings. Only the girls wear low-cut shoes. We think that the 1930s photograph is the samevckass 4-5 years alter.
The 1930s
Here we see the 7th grade class at Overland Park, we believe in the very early-1930s (figure 1). The late-1920s is possible. The 7th grade means children 12-13 years old. In farm areas sometimes sloghtly older children weere involved. Many primary schools at the time ran through the 8th grade. A lot of kids did not continiue on to high school which began with the 9th grade. We see a typical sized class, 36 children. We see what looks to at least 6 farm children with boys wearing overalls. This was very common in the 1930s, but disappeared entirely after World War II (1941-45). We see a lot of white shirts, still mostly long -sleeved shirts. Only three boys clearly are wearing ties. Two boys in theb back riw may be wearing ties. There are two boys who possibly are wearing ties in the last row (the third from the left appears to be wearing a tie around his collar but wearing the collar open it is hard to tell and the boy fifth from the left appears to be very dapper and also wearing a tie). Most of the boys are in the back, but two of the boys in the front are wearing knickers, one with knee socks and the other with long stockings. One boy wears long pants. Only two girls seem to have hair bows. Only one girl has long hair. The girls are all wearing dresses, mostly with long stockings, but only one with black long stocings which were the domiant color for many years. One girl has patterned long stockings. The long stockings are interested given that this looks like a portrait during awarm day, probably in May or June.
A reader provides some useful insights, "I also notice that except for two boys with their hair combed back (the boy wearing the tie with the sweater in the second row and the dapper looking 5th boy from the left who I think is wearing a tie in the last row) all the boys have haircuts that appear similar to styles worn today. There is a rather androgenous looking blond child in the second row second from left wearing a talon (zipper front sweater). I suspect he is a boy but I am not certain. Also the boy in the front row wearing knickers and knee socks appears to be wearing them buttoned at the waistband (I am uncertain but the way the blouse/shirt hangs at the waist appears to indicate that). What throws me off is that the knickers appear too large at the waist (maybe hand-me-downs) and the waist is cinched tightly by his belt. Also his knee socks appear to be designed for the top to be folded down as they are plain color whereas the rest of the knee socks have a pattern. The boy in the front row wearing long pants seems to have outgrown the length but not the waist. Maybe those too are hand me downs. Or maybe it was a style and the cuffs need adjusting to my eye but were the style then. He wears what I think are high top sneakers but they maybe boots.
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