Figure 1.--This family snapshot show two unidentified German children in 1932, presumably children. The younger child is a girl, we are not are about the older child. We see both white knee socks and black long stockings. Both suggest they may be dressed for a formal occassion, perhaps church. A reader writes, "With the oxfords he is wearing and the black shoes and stockings and the male styled coat. I would guess he is a boy. But it is hard to be certain."

Assessing color in 1930 photographs is difficult because virtually all of the images are black and white. It is possible to pick out black and hite hosiery and both colors were worn. Other colors are much more difficult. The knee socks boys wore were normally solid colors, although we do see someboys wearing patterened knee socks or kneesocks with colored bands at the top. Long stocks were virtually all solid colors. We see darl stockings in the ealy 30s, but by the late-30s, usually light brown or grey shades. Black long stockings might be worn for formal occasions. A HBC reader writes, "This is a good illustration of stocking color--the tendency of boys wearing long stockings to have beige or brown as the dominant color. Many mothers seem to have felt that boys should have their knees covered regardless of how warm the weather was--as a matter of propriety. I think this was often an issue of class, of long stockings being worn by boys from middle-class and upper-class families, or by boys whose families wanted to be so regarded." White hosiery was also worn. White was most common for girls, but boys also wore white. This was almost alwas white knee sicks. White long stockings were mostly worn by girls.

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Created: 7:33 AM 6/8/2014
Last updated: 7:33 AM 6/8/2014