Figure 1.--This Irish family in 1905 dresses much as a middle-class English family. Notice the one boy still wearing a pinafore.

HBC has still on limited information on Irish boys clothes. We believe that Irish styles basically follow English fashions. This is certainly true today. One would in fact have difficulty differentiating between the clothes of English and Irish boys. There have been differences, especially in rural areas where poor Irish families simply did not have the money to buy fashionable clothes--especially for children. Rural dress is important because ubtil recently that was where most Irish lived. Boys often wore dresses in rural areas. The kilt was also worn in Ireland, but not as commonly as in Scotland. In the towns and cities, boys normally dressed like English boys even in the 19th century.

Chronology

HBC has little information on boy's clothing before the 19th century. We do, however, have information beginning in the 19th centurty. English fashions are clearly dominant. This has been true for some time. There have been differences in rural areas, primarily because of the poverty rampant in Ireland. This changed in the 20th century, especially after World Wae I. Today in Ireland there is little difference between the clothes worn by boys in urban and rural areas.

Garments

HBC at this time has only limited information on the garments worn by Irish boys. Yonger boys commonly wre dresses, but even some older boys also wore them in rural areas. Kilts have been reported in Ireland, but in modern times they do not appear to have been very common. The caps, suits, shirts, pants, and hosiery worn in Ireland appears to have been very similar to English fashions. Ireland has only a small population and as part of the United Kingdom, the Irish Republic was created in the 1920s, it is understandable that English fashions would have been so influential. Even after independence, people in Ireland and England maintained close ties. Many Irish immigrated to or worked in England.

Activities

Irish school uniforms in the first half of the 20th century were as far as I can tell, indistinguishable from English school uniforms. I know of know significant dirrerence. This is understandable because until the 1920s, Ireland was a part of the United Kingdom. Even after the Republic in the southern counnties achieved independence, little or no change was made in school uniform. We notice some Irish choirs. We also note Irish step dancing. As in Britain, Irish youth groups were a popular activity.

Figure 2.--American boy participating in an Irish dancing contest. About 30 million Americans identify as being of Irish ancestry, about 10 times the population of the Republic.

Irish Ethnic

The Irish are one of the most important ethnic groups that have made modern in America. More than 40 million Americans identify as being Irish Americans, more than one out of every 10 Americans. The immigrants, like each successive immigrant group, did not have an easy time of it. But the Irish have succeded, reaching the Presidency and the Supreme Court. Irish Americans from the beginning looked back at their misty, green island. Ethnic frstivals, music and dance are emensly popular. Like Scotland, the kilt is seen as ethnic folk dress and is worn by Irish pipe bands and step dancers.

Literature

we do not yet have an Irish literature page. There is a page on Irish novels where we are collecting passages where boys clothing is mentioned. Hoefully readers will add items they have noted in their reading.

Individual Accounts

We have some pages about individual Irish boys. These pages are useful in collecting information about fashion and experiences over time. They add valuable insights to the photographic record. Some are historical accounts such as the writer James Joyce's boyhood. We have also have individual accounts contributed by Irish readers. We have added some portraits of individuals or famulies, although in these cases we often have only limited information about the photographs.