Figure 1.--Here ee see a british boy at home wth his family. He wears suspenders (braces) to hold up his short trousers. The snap shot is undated, but we wod guess the late-1940s or earky-50s.

There were may different methods of holding up trousers. The popularity of these methods varied over time and were prially dependent on age. The first dedicated boys' garmet was the skeleton suit which was a button-on garment. Suspenders and belts were important methods. We do not sSuspenders were the orincipal method in the 19th century. Suspenders cintinud to bevimportant, but were dradully replced by belts in the 20th century. we see many boys wearing suspender shorts as were common on the Continent. Many suits, however, were made to be worn with suspenders, especially better quality suits. One popular belt style was the snake belt. I think this was an Englsh invention. I am not sure about the history of the snake belt, but believe it dates from the 19th century. It may have military origins. Another source suggests it originating as a sporting style. The snake belt takes it name from the S-shaped clasp. They were often worn as part of school uniform as they could be done in school colors. Elastic band shorts appeared at mid-century. They were called boxers in America, but I am not sure about England. Many school shorts were done with partial elastic waists. There were also shorts done with side tabs.

Created: 8:47 PM 12/14/2015
Last updated: 8:47 PM 12/14/2015