Figure 1.--We have experienced problems finding photographs showing the knee hem closures on knickers. This is because the material of the knickers usually fell down over the closure, especially when done above the knee as you can see here. |
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Knickers appear to have been closed at the knee with a buckle and strap arrangement. Most photographs seem to show knicker suits with above-the-knee knickers. It is not always apparent just where the knickers were buckled. One reader tells us that they were mostly buckled above the knee. He writes, "You can tell this because the blousing comes only TO the kneecap and NOT BELOW, so the knickers would be buckled just above the knee. I think below-the-knee knickers (which look more like plus fours) are mostly a later development in boy's trousers--at least for boys only 12 years old. We know that some knickers were buckled above the knee because we see a few boys wearing knickers with bare knees and knee socks. It would be interesting to have a cloes up of the buckling arrangement, but unfortunately the material in most cases falls over the bucklr and strap so its a little difficult to see. We note in the 1930s a new construction appeared in the United States, knickers with elastic knit. These were below the knee knickers.
We notice American boys in the early 20th century wearing a cuff arrangement. This seems to have been common in the late 1900s and early 1910s just as fashions were shifting from knee pants to knickers. We believe that this cuff closed with a button. We believe there were both button and buckle closures for these cuffs, but do not yet have a lot of information on this. We have photographs showing the cuff at the knee hem, but very fe images showing the button or buckle closures. A good example here is an American boy, Richard Crown, about 1910.
We think that early knickers had button closures at the knee hem. The closure was on a ciff of strengthen material so it would hold up well. We have been able to find few images showing the closure because the knickers bloused over the cuff and closure. This is a topic we need to obtain more information to develop. Our basic assessment at this point is that knickers in the late-19th century and early 20-th century were mostly these button closures.
Knickers appear to have akso been closed at the knee with a buckle and strap arrangement. This appears to have been a 20th century innovation, but our information is very limited. I believe this was the most common arrangement in America by the 1920s, but am less sure about other coutries. Most photographs seem to show knicker suits with above-the-knee knickers. It is not always apparent just where the knickers were buckled. One reader tells us that they were mostly buckled above the knee. He writes, "You can tell this because the blousing comes only TO the kneecap and NOT BELOW, so the knickers would be buckled just above the knee. I think below-the-knee knickers (which look more like plus fours) are mostly a later development in boy's trousers--at least for boys only 12 years old. We know that some knickers were buckled above the knee because we see a few boys wearing knickers with bare knees and knee socks. It would be interesting to have a cloes up of the buckling arrangement, but unfortunately the material in most cases falls over the buckle and strap so its a little difficult to see.
We notice many boys with what we thought were velastic knickers closures. Almost all available images show the pants closed so you can't see the draw strings which is why we at first thought they were elasticiceed. On closer examination, however, it is clear that elastic was not being used. And we have noted the draw strings in vintage clothing that can be more closely examined. We now believe that these were mostly draw-string closures. These were, however, the bloomer knickers worn with tunic suits and not proper knickers. This was a very popular style for younger boys in the early 20th century.
We note in the 1930s a new construction appeared in the United States, knickers with elastic knit. These were below the knee knickers. We notice many American boys wearing them in the 1930s, but this was an approch not adopted in Europe.
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