Boys' Suit Jackets: Late 19th Century


Figure 1.--Mothers had different approaches in dressing their often large families. Boys of different ages might be dressed identically. More commonly older boys wore different suits with adult styling. Boys closer in age might have minor stylistic differences made in the same suits. Notehow the two younger boys wear the same kneepants suit, but with different collars and bows.

Young boys still wore dresses in the late 19th century, although specialized boy dresses apeeared in the 1870s. After mid-century some new styles of boys suits appeared became very popular. Perhaps the most common late 19th century boys' suit was the sailor suit. The sailor suit, which had been introduced in the 1840s, was wildly popular in the late 19th century, even in countries with no navies. The first sailor suits were made with long bell-bottomed pants. By the 1870s, kneepanbrs had appeared and were very popular. Many suits worn by boys in the late 19th century were quite plain, others like the Fauntleroy suit unbelievably fancy for a boy. The Fauntleroy suit may stand for all time as the most unsuitable garment erver designed for the small, and in some cases, not so small boy. The small velvet cut-away jackets without lapels were worn open to display blouses of increasing ornate lace and ruffles. They were almost always worn with kneepants and in England occasionally knickers. We also notice collar buttoning jackets. A good example is Minnie Tamn, a Minnesota boy, we think in the 1870s. Older boys wore Eton and Norfolk suits as well as many new variants like the Suffolk suit. Kneepants appeared for suits in the 1860s, but were not widely worn until the 1870s. Increasingly older boys wore their suits with kneepants or knickers by the 1890s. Suits often included a vest or waistcoat. Mothers had different approaches in dressing their often large families. Boys of different ages might be dressed identically. More commonly older boys wore different suits with adult styling. Boys closer in age might have minor stylistic differences made in the same suits.

The 1870s

Young boys still wore dresses in the late 19th century, although specialized boy dresses apeeared in the 1870s. After mid-century some new styles of boys suits appeared became very popular. Perhaps the most common late 19th century boys' suit was the sailor suit. The sailor suit, which had been introduced in the 1840s, was wildly popular in the late 19th century, even in countries with no navies. The first sailor suits were made with long bell-bottomed pants. By the 1870s, kneepants had appeared and were very popular. We also notice collar buttoning jackets. A good example is Minnie Tamn, a Minnesota boy, we think in the 1870s. Kneepants appeared for suits in the 1860s, but were not widely worn until the 1870s.

The 1880s

Many suits worn by boys in the late 19th century were quite plain. A good example here is Charley Rosewater in 1881. Charley wears a plain, collar-buttoning suit. It was in the 1880s, however, that fancy suits became very popular. others like the Fauntleroy suit unbelievably fancy for a boy. The Fauntleroy suit may stand for all time as the most unsuitable garment erver designed for the small, and in some cases, not so small boy. The small velvet cut-away jackets without lapels were worn open to display blouses of increasing ornate lace and ruffles. They were almost always worn with kneepants and in England occasionally knickers.

The 1890s

Older boys wore Eton and Norfolk suits as well as many new variants like the Suffolk suit. Increasingly older boys wore their suits with kneepants or knickers by the 1890s. Suits often included a vest or waistcoat. Mothers had different approaches in dressing their often large families. Boys of different ages might be dressed identically. We see a lot of this in the 1890s. More commonly older boys wore different suits with adult styling. Boys closer in age might have minor stylistic differences made in the same suits which we refer to as age grading. .









HBC






Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main suit jacket chronology page]
[Introduction] [Activities] [Biographies] [Chronology] [Cloth and textiles] [Clothing styles] [Countries] [Topics]
[Bibliographies] [Contributions] [FAQs] [Glossaries] [Images] [Satellite sites] [Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]



Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web chronological pages:
[Early 19th century] [Mid-19th century] [The 1860s] [The 1870s] [The 1880s]
[The 1890s] [The 1900s] [The 1910s] [The 1920s] [The 1930s] [The 1940s]
[The 1950s] [The 1960s] [The 1970s] [The 1980s]



Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web style pages:
[Skeleton suits] [Eton suits] [Norfolk jackets] [Kilts] [Knicker suits]
[Blazers] [Short pants suits] [Long pants suits]



Created: December 23, 1999
Last updated: 2:53 PM 8/29/2007