Figure 1.--These unidentified Americn boys wear identical knee pant suits. The portrait is undated, but looks to be taken about 1905. Note the black long stockings.

Knee pants continued to be widely worn in the 1900s. We see almost all boys and many teenagers wearing knee pants dyring the decade. Older boys wearing knee pants was most common at the turn-of-the 20th century. Almost all boys wore knee pants, even some older teenagers during the 1900s. The peak era for knee pants was the 1890s and 1900s. We even see boys in rural areas commonly wearing knee pants in the 1900s. They were much more of a city fashion in the 1890s. They were worn both with suits as well as for play and casual wear. Knee pants continued to be worn at knee level as was the style that became prevalent in the 1890s. Most boys wore knee pants to school in the 1900s. A good example is Harry Lodge about 1908. Some boys wore knickers, but knee pants were much more common. As common as knee pants were in the 1900s, it is surprising how rapidly they were replaced by knickers. Styles changed dramatically in the late 1900s. While many boys began wearuing knickers at the end of thecade, we note that boys continued to wear black long stockings wih both knee pants and knickers. Yonger boys often wore white thre-quarter socks or stockings.

Created: 6:57 PM 1/30/2009
Last updated: 6:57 PM 1/30/2009