Figure 1.--This CDV portrait shows an unidentified boy with his mother and probably a daughter. Notice the wasp-like waists. Whale-bone corsets and these waists were popular (1870s-80s). The boy loks tonbe avoutb4-years old. He is weaing a sailor kilt suit with a wide-brimmed hat. Notice the petticoat. The portrait is also undated, but we woulld guess it was taken abiut 1880. All wee know for sure is tht it was taken by S. Fichtel (we are not positive about the 'F') in Hoboken, New Jersey. Most of the discussion here is about the top of the boy's outfit so we have loaded an enlargement of the top. To see the botton, return to the previous page
This CDV portrait shows an unidentified boy with his mother and probably a daughter. Notice the wasp-like waists. Whale-bone corsets and these waists were popular (1870s-80s). The boy loks tonbe avoutb4-years old. He is weaing a sailor kilt suit with a wide-brimmed hat. Notice the petticoat. The portrait is also undated, but we woulld guess it was taken abiut 1880. All wee know for sure is tht it was taken by S. Fichtel (we re not positive about the 'F') in Hoboken, New Jersey. A HBC reader has provided a more detailed discussion. "Great image of a kilt suit outfit. I see it is a pleated skirt to the kilt and the sailor blouse goes over it. It appears that the outfit is navy but that is only a guess since the image is black and white. My assumption is that the skirt buttons to a bodice. The blousing effect of the front buttoning sailor blouse suggests that. Also the skirt has three stipes along the hem while the sailor blouse is trimmed with stripes making me wonder if the skirt and the blouse were separate articles of clothing that the boy was dressed in rather than a suit. It also appears that the cuffs of the blouse are held together by cuff links. The blouse has a chest pocket which appears to hang rather low on the boy's chest and the pocket is adorned with double stripe piping. Also the blouse appears to button down the front which was not traditional for a sailor blouse. {HBC is not sure about that.] The boy seems to have both a bowt his neck and one where the sailor blouse starts to be buttoned in the front--mothers at the times loved bows. It appears that the boy is wearing a colored shirt or shield under the blouse.
The boy wears either an elaborate slip (or petticoat) under his skirt: the scalloped bottom, embroidery and beading appears visible beneath the hem of his pleated skirt. I am calling it a skirt rather than a kilt only because it has pleats and the triple striping in a white material above the hem rather than a kilt with a flat plain front. The boy appears to be wearing thick long black stockings. The high-top shoes button up and appear to be the kind that an adult would dress the child in rather than the child dress himself. [HBC is not sure about yhis. There are a lot of buttons, but the buttons mat=yh be easier than tying hoe laces, an interesting question.] Also the large straw hat is worn at a high angle so the boy's face and hair is visible for the camera--a common convetion at the time. .
