Figure 1.--One boy in this 1969 Hungarian film wears patterned red kneesocks. Another boy swears ankle socks. Most boys, however wore long black pants.

Boys at school wearing shortpants in the early 20th century commonly wore dark colored three-quarter length socks or kneesocks. Knee socks became more common in the inter-war period. The declining number of boys wearing shorts by the 1960s commonly wore them with kneesocks, both white and colored kneespcks. There appear to have been no school rule about the socks worn. Some boys also wore ankle socks.

Three-quarter length socks

Boys at school wearing kneepants in the late 19th and early 20th century commonly wore them with dark colored three-quarter length socks. This was especially the case during the warmer summer months. HBC has not noted colored socks being worn.

Long Stockings

Boys at school wearing kneepants dufring the late 19th century commonly wore them with long stockings during the colder winter months. Long stockings declined in popularity in the 29th cntury, but younger boys continued wearing them with short oants during the winter until the 1940s.shortpants in the early 20th century commonly wore dark colored three-quarter length socks or kneesocks. Initially long stockings were prinmarily dark colors, but lighter colors appeared in the 1920s.

Knee Socks

Boys at school wearing shortpants in the early 20th century increasingly wore kneesocks by the 1910s. Unitially they were usually darl slid colors. Lighter colors appeared in the 1920s as well as patterens. White kneesocks were also wrn. Boys were still wearing kneesocks with shorts in the 1960s, but they were not very common by the 1970s as most boys wore long panrs to school.

Ankle Socks

Boys did not begin to commonly wear ankle socks to school with short pants until the the 1940s. Ankle socks became more common in the 1950s, especially during the 1950s. Even by the 1960s, howver, many boys were still wearing kneesocks.

Created: January 22, 2001
Last updated: January 22, 2001