Figure 1.--. This image is of a rather old American boy with blond ringlets and hair bow. He is dressed in a plain sailor suit and has a disdainful look on his face. He is pictured with a real gun (Presumably studio prop) and a porcelin dog. Since he wears bangs, mom has added the hair bow for decoration or to display one blond ringlet in front. I like these images of older boys. The appearance of their hair is so incongruous with their dress and demeanor one wonders what their Mother was thinking. He hardly looks outfitted for hunting. But then again men at the time dressed for hunting in tweed suits and knickers. Image courtesy of the RG collection.

American Boy (about 1890)

This image is of a rather old American boy with blond ringlets and hair bow. The image is unidentified. I'm not sure about the boy's age, but would guess about 7 years. The image is also undated. We would guess about 1890. He is dressed in a standard knne-pants sailor suit. Clothing conventions were very varied at the time. The sailor suit is a very standard one that was worn by many boys his age. His mother has combined this widely worn outfit with ringlets and a hairbow that even at the time would have been seen as rather juvenile--at least by other boys his age. The symmetry is an interesting feature of these ringlet curls hairdos. Note that she has selected a non-symetrical style for the boys' ringlets. He seems to have a disdainful look on his face. He is pictured with a real gun (Presumably studio prop) and a porcelin dog. Since he wears bangs, mom has added the hair bow for decoration or to display one blond ringlet in front. The appearance of the hair on these older boys is so incongruous with their dress and demeanor one wonders what their Mother was thinking. A photographic studio would have had various backgrounds and props. We wonder if this was mother's selection or one the boy wanted. Perhaps his father liked to hunt. He hardly looks outfitted for hunting. It is interesting that he was put in a boyish hunting scene with ringlets and a hair bow. But then again men at the time dressed for hunting in tweed suits and knickers.

A reader writes, "The expression and outfit reminds me of Georgie from the "Magnificent Ambersons". The clothes and hair being a style unrelated to the boy's nature but the family status. Perhaps it is also true here.





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Created: 1:48 AM 9/26/2004
Last edited: 1:48 AM 9/26/2004