Figure 1.--Here I am at age 4 before I began school wearing a pullover, shorts, and white kneesocks.

A HBC reader from northern England has provided us some details about his boyhood clothing in the 1960s and 70s. He attended a state primary school and the Lancaster Royal Grammar School, one of the oldest schools in England.

Youthful Clothes

I do not recall the clothes I wore as a very little boys in great detail. I do know what I wore, however, because of all our family photographs. These photographs of me were taken during the last 12 months before I started primary school; I suspect they portray typical clothing of the late 1960s in England. I do not remember having any say in what I wore; whether that was down to my lack of interest or the complete absence of choice of ‘trendy gear’ when compared to what is available now, I do not know. Here I am wearing a sweater with short pants and white kneesocks. I also had heavy checkered coat with a hood.

Primary School

Grammar School

I did well on my 11+ exam and attended the Lancaster Royal Grammar School. When I attened in the 1970s the uniform was a blue blazer with badge and long grey trousers. From the pictures on the walls I could see that into the mid-90s the younger boys wore the uniform with short trousers and kneesocks.

Paul