Figure 1.--Here we see an English boy at the beach wearing a bib-front romper outfit with a shirt and sweater suggesting it may have been a little chilly. The romper looks to be done in a water resistant material, but it is a bit difficult to tell. I'm not sure if mum's idea was to protect his clothes or to keep him from getting wet. The snapshot is undated, perhaps taken in the 30s or 40s. He looks to be about 5 years old.

As we have so few images and no catalog information at this time, we are just beginning to build some idea about the conventionsd associated with rompers in England. Unlike France they were not exclusively a boys' garment. In fact more girls seem to have worn them than boys, a similar pattern to America. We do see girls wearing them, but the small number of images involves do not make for a definitive statement. They do seem to have been a kind of play suit. We have not noted the more formal rompers as sometimes seen in France, but our archive here is still very limited. As far as we can tell so far, rompers in England beyond the infant stage were mostly worn as utilitarian play clothes, often over rather than instead of other clothes as was the general, practice in France. Rompers, im some cases done in water reelent fabric, seem to have been particularly popular as beachwear. Many of the images e have found are children on family beach outingsd, wearing rompers as a protective garment. They were not for swimming, but for children paddling along the beach amd playing in the sand. We notice an unidentified boy wearing romper pants as beachwear in 1927. Notive he is wearing a blouse or shirt with the rompers. We notice similar images into the 1950s. HBC still has only limited little information about English rompers. We have not yet noted English boys wearing dressy romper suits. An English reader tells us, "I have never seen anyone wear what the unfortunate boys in the French photographs are wearing, although in the late 1950s very young boys would sometimes wear shorts with the same appearance. I can't comment as to whether all in one tops and shorts were available but have never seen them mentioned."

Gender

As we have so few images and no catalog information at this time, we are just beginning to build some idea about the conventionsd associated with rompers in England. Unlike France they were not exclusively a boys' garment. In fact more girls seem to have worn them than boys, a similar pattern to America. We do see girls wearing them, but the small number of images involves do not make for a definitive statement.

Playwear

Rompers in England seem to have been a kind of play suit. We have not noted the more formal rompers as sometimes seen in France, but our archive here is still very limited. As far as we can tell so far, rompers in England beyond the infant stage were mostly worn as utilitarian play clothes, often over rather than instead of other clothes as was the general, practice in France. Rompers, im some cases done in water reelent fabric, seem to have been particularly popular as beachwear. Many of the images e have found are children on family beach outingsd, wearing rompers as a protective garment. They were not for swimming, but for children paddling along the beach amd playing in the sand. We notice an unidentified boy wearing romper pants as beachwear in 1927. Notive he is wearing a blouse or shirt with the rompers. We notice similar images into the 1950s. HBC still has only limited little information about English rompers.

Dressy Outfits

We have not yet noted English boys wearing dressy romper suits. An English reader tells us, "I have never seen anyone wear what the unfortunate boys in the French photographs are wearing, although in the late 1950s very young boys would sometimes wear shorts with the same appearance. I can't comment as to whether all in one tops and shorts were available but have never seen them mentioned."