We see many American boys wearing ringlet curls with various skirted garments. Some boys wore ringlet curls with dresses. This was not the very young children as they often did not have enough hair to be curled into ringlets. It did include pre-school boys. There is also a problem with udentifying boys before breeching. Also a small number of available portraits are identified, probably something like 5 percent. Thus we are not altogether sure who the children are in dresses. Other skirted garments were only for boys, kilt suits. The kilt suit was a very popular boys' outfit. And some boys wore them with ringlets. We also notice boys wearing Highland outfits, but they seem less popular than kilt suits. And we do not see many boys wearing ringlets with the Highland outfits. This is because kilt suits were more popular with younger boys. We also see some boys wearing tunics with curls. This seems especially the case with the fancy tunics worn in the 1900s. We see few American boys wearing smocks and thus few boys wore wore ringlets with smocks.

Dresses

Some boys wore ringlet curls with dresses. Yonger boys in the 19th century commonly wore dresses. We see boys wearing a wide range of different dress styles. Generally the dresses biys wore, especially in the late-19th century, were relativey plain, but this was not always the case. This was not the very young children as they often did not have enough hair to be curled into ringlets. It did include pre-school boys. There is also a problem with udentifying boys before breeching, especially boys weaeing dresses as girls also of course dresses. Also a small number of available portraits are identified, probably something like 5 percent. Thus we are not altogether sure who the children are in dresses.

Kilts

We notice some boys wearing kilt skirts with blouses during the summer. These appear to be the kilt skirts purchased with kilt suits. I don;t think mothers purchased the kilt slirts separately, although we are not entirely sure about this. We believe that boys during the summer commonly wore the kikt skirts with fancy blouses, but without the jacket and vests that commonly with these suits. We note some of these boys with ringlet curls.

Figure 2.--This fashionable philadelphia boy about 1890 wears his ringlet curls with a kilt suit. This was a very popular garment for younger boys at the time. Put your cursor on the image to see an elargement of his hair style.

Kilt Suits

Other skirted garments were only for boys, kilt suits. The kilt suit was a very popular boys' outfit. Highland kilt outfits were worn, butt were mot very common. Kilt suits were much more common which is one reason why we see so many boys wearing them with ringlet curls. And some boys wore them with ringlets. This was a major style for pre-school boys. Some boys even wore kilt suots after they began school, although not to school. Quite a few of the images we have found of boys wearing ringlets show them wearing kilt suits rather than Fauntleroy suits. Amd unlike dresses, we can be sure the child is a boy if he is wearing a kilt suit. Girls wore dresses and not kilt suits. We begin to see kilt suits in the 1870s and they are much less common after the turn-of-the 20th century. This isvery close to the time time frame that ringlets were popular for boys. And with kilt suits we do not have the difficulty with gender identification because girls did not wear them. A good example is an unidentified Minneapolis boy about 1890. There were different styles of kilts suits, including Fauntleroy kilts.

Highland Kilts

We also notice boys wearing Highland outfits, but they seem less popular than kilt suits. A Highland kilt outfits included many different item and was more complicated than the kilt suit. It was also rather expensive if all the regalia was purchased. We do not see many boys wearing ringlets with the portaits of Highland outfits we have found. This is because kilt suits were more popular with younger boys. High kilt outfits unlike the other kirted garment types could be worn by boys of all ages and even teenagers. Many of these boys were too old for ringlets. The younger boys were not, but we see only a few images of boys wearing ringlets with Highland kilts because relatively few boys wore them. Many were boys of Scottish ancestry unlike the kilt suit which was worn irrespective of ethnicity.

Skirts

We notice boys wearing blouses with skirts. These were skirts without any kilt styling. This appears to have been a warm weather summer fashion. Unlike the kilts that went with kilt suits, these plain skirts may have been purchased as stand-along garments. They had the advantage that girls could also wear them.

Figure 4.--This boy probably about 1905 wears ringlet curls with a sailor styled tunic, one of the most fashionable styles.

Tunics

We also see some boys wearing tunics with curls. The tunuc was a very popular garment for boys in the early-20th century. They were worn both for play and dressing up. We see large number of pre-school boys wearing them. A few younger boys even wore them to school. This seems especially the case with the fancy tunics worn in the 1900s. We see quite a few boys wearing tunics with ringlet curls, especially in the 1900s. Actually boys wore tunics throughout the 19th century although the popularity varied greatly over time. Many of the image we have found showing boys wearing tunics with ringlet curls from the the turn-of-the 20th century and very early 20th century. This was at a time when the tunic had become very popular and ringlet curkls were declining in popularity. Thus most of these images date to the 1900s. A good example is Ivan Eugene Perry about 1906-07. While there were play tunics there were also styling tunics. Ringlets were becoming less popular forvboys at this time. But the tunic was such a popular garment, we see quite a few mothers doing their sons hair in ringlets with tunic outfits. By the 1910s, the fashion of ringlets for boys had begun to decline. Tunics were, however, still a major style for boy in the 1910s. We note Theodore Roosevelt Johnson in 1912, probably just before he began school.

Smocks

We see few American boys wearing smocks and thus few boys wore wore ringlets with smocks.

Pinafores

Pinafores were primarily a girl's garments. We see very few American boys wearing pinafores with or without ringlet curls. This was especially in studio portraits. The siyuation may have been somewhat different at home.

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Created: 12:47 AM 3/22/2009
Last edited: 12:18 AM 9/1/2017