Figure 1.-- "

At the turn of the 20th century, the “waist union suit” for children was invented, which combined the functions of the adult-style underwear with those of the “waist” so that only one undergarment was necessary. I'm not sure what company first produced this innovation. They first appeared about 1909, bit do not seem to have become poplar until the late 1910s, about 1917. Waist union suits were widely worn in the 1920s and 30s. They rapidly declined in popularity in the 1940s. These went out of style during the 1940s when long stockings ceased to be widely worn . Boys for the most part ceased wearing either short pants or knickers into their teen-age years and began to wear long trousers at earlier age. Girls continued to wear long stockings a little longer. With the disappearance of long stockings, garter tabs on underwear were no longer necessary. As far as we can tell, this was a distinctively American innovation that appeared at the turn of the 20th century.

The 1900s

We first see the waist union suit in the late-1900s, we believe in 1909. But it is possible it could have been earlier in the decade. The earliest example we have found dates from 1909, but of course that does not mean that there may not be earlier examples. But given our effort find and archive examples, it does mean that they were not very common in the 1900s. So the 1909 date may well be either the first one or oine of the earliest examples. We notice a waist union suit in the Balbriggen Underwear product line in 1909. (The date is a little indistinct. It could have been 1904, but 1909 seems more likely.) We notice a waist union suit in the various garments offered. As we do not know if this was the first waist union suit, we do not know if it was invented by the Balbriggen Underwear company. The company does appear, however, to have been a leader in intriducing the waist union suit. We have not noted other ads in the 1900s for the waist union suit, which suggests that it was not an immediate success.

The 1910s

We notice early versions of the waist union suit in the 1910s. Although it first appeared in the late-1900s, they do not seem to have been an immediate success. The waist union suit does not seem to have become a popularitem until the late-1910s, but we still notice only a few ads. We do not see a large number of adds until the lter part of the decade, about 1917. There seem to have been two important brands, EZ-Waists and Allheneeds. We first notice the EZ Waist Union Suit in 1915. We also notice Allheneeds in 1915 and 1917. The same company also made Allsheneeds for girls. Many versions of the waist union uit could be worn by both boys and girls. This was particularly true of these eaely suits. We notice 1919 ads for EZ Waist Union Suit showing domestic scenes.

The 1920s

While we notice relatively few ads for waist union suits in the 1900s and 1910s, by the 1920s, magazines and catalogs are full of them. We see them in both national magazines and local newspapers. We iterpret this to mean that the waist union suit had become a very popular item of clothing for American children. There are many examples in local newspapers. An examole comes from a Salt Lake City newspaper in 1921 for unbranded panty waist union suits. The main companies producing underwear like Nazareth, Sexton, and Minneapolis Knitting offered their versions of waist union suits. We notice various examples in major magazines. The Nazareth underwear product line in 1920 included waist union suits. There were also Sexton summer waist union suits in 1921. Waist union suits were also featured in the major mail order catalogs. The Montgomery Ward catalog in 1923 offered combination suits. This was another term for waist union suits. Sears also offered waist union suits. We note Sears summer underwear includes a waist suit in 1925. We noticetwo more Nazareth waist union suits in 1927 and 1928. The Minneapolis Knitting Co. offered waist suits in 1928. Ward's family underwear in 1929 included waist suits. Wards also offered Winter waist suits in 1929. We also note a Nazareth waist suit for boys in 1929.

The 1930s

We continue to see Waist union suits offere by both manufacturers and catalog companies in the 1930s. We notice both older companies (EZ-Mills and Minneapolis Knitting) as well as companies more familiar to modern readers Haynes). A Minneapolis Knitting Co ad in 1930 included a waist union suit. We see more underwear types from another Minneapolis Knitting Co ad in 1930. We also see a Haynes ad in 1930 which includes a waist union suit. There were also extensive offerings in catalogs. Sears summer underwear included waist suits in 1931. We also see Sears waist suits in 1932. A Haynes ad showing their product line in 1933 included waist suits. We also see Ward's winter waist suits in 1935. EZ-Mills was still active and the EZ product line included waist suits in 1937. We see Sears waist suits in 1938.

The 1940s

We still see some waist union suits offered in the 1940s, but only in the early 40s. This reflects the rapidly declining popularity of long stockings in the United States. We have found several catalog offerings in the early 40s. We see Sears Waist Suits (both short leg and long leg) in 1941-42. Wards underwear offerings in 1942 also included waist suits. We also notice Sears Pilgrim waist suits in 1942.

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Created: 6:00 PM 10/19/2004
Last updated: 1:35 AM 9/26/2011