American Classic Fauntleroy Blouses: Chronology

Figure 1.-- Here we have an unidentified Texas boy wearing a classic Fauntleroy blouse. The cabinet card is undated, but we would guess was taken about 1895 or later. Here the relatively small bow is notable. He looks to be about 6 years old. The studio was Thomason and Lffer in Fort Worth, Texas.

We see fancy blouses appearing before the Fauntleroy blouse made their fashion appearance. The actual classic Fauntleroy blouses appeared about 1885 when Ms. Burnett published her book--Little Lord Fauntleroy The book was at first serialized and this received enormous attention. he photographic record shows that very large numbers of boys wore them. There was a social-class factor involved here, but it should not be thought that only boys from rich families wore them. The Fauntleroy blouse was worn by a broad spectrum of American boys, especially the middle-class. We see these blouses up to about 1905-- a 20 year period. This was the period in which the Fauntleroy Craze was most pronounced. We see the popularity declining by the turn of the 20th century and the notably by about 1905. Not only do we see fewer boys wearing them, but increasingly younger boys as well. Less fancy blouse versions continued into the 1910s. These blouses were very common during this period, probably more common than the full Fauntleroy suit. A good example is George Gunkle, we think in the late-1890s.

The 1880s

We see fancy blouses appearing before the Fauntleroy blouse made their fashion appearance. The actual classic Fauntleroy blouses appeared about 1885 when Ms. Burnett published her book--Little Lord Fauntleroy The book was at first serialized and this received enormous attention. he photographic record shows that very large numbers of boys wore them. There was a social-class factor involved here, but it should not be thought that only boys from rich families wore them. The Fauntleroy blouse was worn by a broad spectrum of American boys, especially the middle-class. The blouses are often described as done in lace, but this was not the dominant type of collar. Lace was expensive. And lace collars were difficult to do in the same size as a ruffled collar. The primary type of collar for Fauntleroy blouses was a large ruffled collar. The boy's blouse here is a good example. There were lace collars, but more commonly the blouses were ruffled. Some of the more elaborate might have lace trim. From the beginning, more boys would wear Fauntleroy blouses than the classic suits.

The 1890s

The 1890s was the decade in which the Fauntleroy Craze was most pronounced, although it was very common in the second half of the 1880s and first half of the 1900s decade. Styling did not change much, we just see large numbers of boys wearing the blouses. A good example is George Gunkle, we think in the late-1890s.

The 1900s

We see still see some of the classic Fauntleroy blouses being worn in the 1900s decade. We commonly see these fancy Fauntleroy blouses up to about 1905-- a full 20 year period from when Mrs Burnett published her book. This was essentially the end of the Fauntleroy Craze, although Fauntleroy styles would continue to have an influence for some time. We see the popularity declining by the turn of the 20th century and most notably by about 1905. Not only do we see fewer boys wearing the fancy blouses, but increasingly younger boys as well. And they were more likely to be worn without the accompanying cut-away jackets. These blouses were very common during this period, probably more common than the full Fauntleroy suit. By the end of the 1900s decade we see these blouses becoming notably less elaborate. An exception to his was a style for older boys up to younger teens. It was a less elaborate, often colored or striped Fauntleroy blouse which had a larger trimmed Fauntleroy collar with a back flap. We see it being won as a dressy garment when a jacket was not being worn during the summer.

The 1910s

Less fancy blouse versions continued into the 1910s. These blouses were very common during this period, probably more common than the full Fauntleroy suit. And we continue to see younger boy louses for some time with Fauntleroy influences, but considerably toned down.

Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing other related pages:
[Dresses] [Breeching] [Kilts] [Smocks] [Pinafores] [Sailor Hats] [Blouses]
[Ring Bearers] [Long hair] [Ringlet curls] [Hair bows] [Bangs] [Collars] [Bows]

Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main Fauntleroy blouse page]
[Introduction] [Activities] [Biographies] [Chronology] [Clothing styles] [Countries]
[Bibliographies] [Contributions] [FAQs] [Glossaries] [Images] [Links] [Registration] [Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]

Created: 11:46 PM 9/19/2022
Last updated: 10:56 AM 8/26/2024