Figure 1.--This American mother has outfitted her boys in matching blue sailor suits. Notice thecaps they were rather a retro style by the 1960s. The snapshot is undated, but the 1963 Thunderbird suggests 1963 or 64. The boys look to be about 3-7 years old. Given the way mother is dressed, we believed they were attending some kind of society event. Notice the younger boy's saddle shoes.

American boys after World War II no longer commnly wore sailor suits, but the style has never completely disappeared. Girls still wore a range of sailor dresses. Girls might wear sailor dresses to school. They were normally not a dressy style. And we see some boys wearing sailor suits. There were some play suits for little boys with sailor collars during the 1940s, but these became increasingy rare by the 1950s. Some dressy sailor suits outfits for younger boys were also worn. We do not see them at school or even very commonly for church. We have so few images that we are not entirely sure just when they were worn and for what occassions. We think they were a style that boys in some affluent families may have worn for a variety of social occassions. We are mostly talking about pre-school boys, but some younger primary schools occassionaly wore sailor suits. They seem to have been used most commonly as attire for boys at formal weddings. Some of the suits had matching caps, but this does not seem very common. We note both long and short pants suits. Younger boys might wear saddle shoes with these suits.

The 1940s (1945-49)

There were some play suits for little boys with sailor collars during the 1940s. We note both long and short pants suits. Younger boys might wear saddle shoes with these suits. I see from family snap shots that as a toddler I wore a self-belted short pants sailor suit. I entered 1st Grade in 1948. My memory is a little hazzy, but I never wore a sailor suit to school or remember seeing other boys wearing them. I do recall girls wearing sailor dresses.

The 1950s

Sailor suits became increasingy rare by the 1950s. Some dressy sailor suits outfits for younger boys were also worn. We do not see them at school or even very commonly for church. We have so few images that we are not entirely sure just when they were worn and for what occassions. We think they were a style that boys in some affluent families may have worn for a variety of social occassions. We are mostly talking about pre-school boys, but some younger primary schools occassionaly wore sailor suits. A HBC reader writes, "As you point out, sailor suits for boys were not popular in the 50s. During summer 1957 when I was 5 and a half my mom bought me one of these. I still vividly remember the white shorts,the blouse and the white knee socks. I remember always wearing white polishable shoes with the outfit and mom would shine the shoes with that white polish that nurses used. I did not have as big a problem wearing it as with other short pants outfits as I thought it better than those suspender bow tie outfits that kids wore in that era. I remember wearing it on Sundays at amusement parks and also when the neighbors took me to the movies, which in those days was a big treat. Also, I was looking at my 1st grade school picture and one of the girls is wearing a blue sailor girl's outfit."

The 1960s

Sailor suits except for a fewpre-school boys were rare by the 1960s. They seem to have been used most commonly as attire for boys at formal weddings or other special occasions. Some of the suits had matching caps, but this does not seem very common. This American mother has outfitted her boys in matching traditional blue sailor suits complete with three-strip detailing (figure 1). Notice the caps they were rather a retro style by the 1960s. The snapshot is undated, but the 1963 Thunderbird suggests 1963 or 64. The boys look to be about 3-7 years old. Given the way mother is dressed, we believed they were attending some kind of society event. Notice the younger boy's saddle shoes. We notice Laura Anna and Cecil Criss in matching red sailor suits during 1967. They were dressed up for a Christmas portrait. In his case the detailing is two stripes.

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Created: 1:00 AM 4/21/2011
Last updated: 1:35 AM 7/5/2018