Figure 1.--Winter underwear was a staple for American children for nearly a century. The 1930s were the last decade this was the case. Here a 'Saturday Evening Post' cover (February 27, 1937) showing a boy getting a new pair of winter underwear. Notice the short legs as he warsc knickers. The boy doesn't seem very happy about it, but we are not sure just why. I think the implication is that winter underwear was not liked by children. I grew up in the 1940s and never recall seeing winter underwear as a boy. Winter underwear was still sold, but became not only seasonal, but increasingly regional, still worn in the northern tier of states near the Canadian border.

The union suits and combination suits discussed here were worn by American children. A good deal of information is available on the underwear worn by Ameeican children, especially beginning in the 1880s because of the popular mail order catalogs. A 1923 Montgomery Wards mail order catalog shows the varied styles of combination suits available for boys and girls in 1923. I am not sure at this time if there were actual differences between a combinatin suit and a union suit or if they were just different terms for the same garment. A HBC reader writes, "I think the combination suit was very specific. It combined the union suit with a hose supporter or waist supporter that we saw earlier. In 1915 Stewart's catalogue there is a reference to a combination suit but it is called an "alheneeds" it was for younger boys as listed in the site. Notice it was also for summer when the extra layer of a waist to hold up stockings would be very hot!" We note changes in American underwear styles after World War, to adapt to changes in juvenile clothing such as short pants. American children for many years wore support garments years to hold up various garments, especially long stockings. These were different support garments worn in America and Europe.

Chronology

We do npt have much information on 19th century underwear, especially the early 19th century. We know more about the late-19th century. The union suits and combination suits discussed here were worn by American children. A good deal of information is available on the underwear worn by Ameeican children, especially beginning in the 1880s because of the popular mail order catalogs. We note changes in American underwear styles after World War, to adapt to changes in juvenile clothing such as short pants.

Garments

American boys have worn a variety of garments as underwear. Long unferwear, especially union suits were common in the late 19th century. We see a range of different underwear garments in the early 20th century. After World War I underwear began to become less complicated. A 1923 Montgomery Wards mail order catalog shows the varied styles of combination suits available for boys and girls in 1923. I am not sure at this time if there were actual differences between a combinatin suit and a union suit or if they were just different terms for the same garment. A HBC reader writes, "I think the combination suit was very specific. It combined the union suit with a hose supporter or waist supporter that we saw earlier. In 1915 Stewart's catalogue there is a reference to a combination suit but it is called an "alheneeds" it was for younger boys as listed in the site. American children for many years wore support garments years to hold up various garments, especially long stockings. These were different support garments worn in America and Europe.

Seasonality

Notice it was also for summer when the extra layer of a waist to hold up stockings would be very hot!"

Individuals

We note several individual accounts from Americans about the underwear they wore as children. A good example is Mina Christine Arnold Young, born in Billings, Montana, during 1913. Mina describes her childhood clothing and underwear as a girl of about 12 in the mid 1920s.

Created: 11:13 PM 1/7/2007
Last updated: 6:02 PM 3/15/2012