Figure 1.--This CDV portrait is unidentified. Sadly the image is badly washed-out. The portrait is is by Whipple of 297 Washington Street, Boston. Notice how plain the suit is. The portrait is undated, but we know was taken in the mid-1860s. It has a 3 cent Internal Revenue stamp on the back. This helps date the portrait. The Federal Government to help finnce the Civil War approved a tax on all photographs sold in the United States from September 1, 1864 to August 1, 1866. Photographers had to charge for a revenue stamp. This was only a short period, but it does help date the portraits with these stamps. Click on the image to see the actual revenue stamp. Image courtesy of the PH collection.

We notice a variety of fancy styles in the 19th century for younger boys. The principal jacket style by mid-century was the cut-away jacket. Suits with cut-away jackets appeared in the mid-19th century in a range of different styles. Many of these were very plain. The portrait here is an example of a very plain suit (Figure 1). Other suits were detailed with military styling. Piping, stripes, and embroidery were commonly employed in the detailing. The most striking such suits were the Zouave suits. Of course the best known suit style in the late-19th century was the Fauntleroy suit, one without military styling. The cut of the jacket varies as to how sharply the two sides separated. There were also differences in length. Fauntleroy cut-away jackets were especially small to show off fancy blouses to the best advantage. Cut away jackets were connected at the top in various ways. Some buttones near the collar. Others had tab connectors. Many cut-away jackets had breast pockets. The cut-away jacket suit was worn with and without vests and with a variety of blouses, both plain and fancy blouses. We are not sure about the age conventions involved as we ave few catalog from the mid-19th century. We see to see boys from about 3-8 years of age wearing these suits, but this is just an initial assessment. These jackets were normally worn with shortened leg pants, both kneepants and bloomer knickers. Quite a number of Ameican boys wearing these cut-away jackers are archived on HBC. A good example is Charles Fox in the 1860s.

Chronology

We do not yet have a complete chronology of cut-away jackets in the United States. We are unsure as to how widely worn they were in the 1850s. We do not find very many cut-away jackets in Daguerreotypes and Ambrotypes we have collected from the 1840s and 50s. We do note one unidentified boy from we believe the late 1850s. We note large numbers of American boys wearing cut-away jackers in early CDVs meaning images as early as 1862. The style was so well established in the early 60s that it surely must have been popular by at least the late-50s. We note cut away jackets still popula in the 1870s. It was the cut-away jacket thast was used for the classic Fauntleroy suit in the 1880s. We not some boys wearing cut-away jackets in the late-90s, but rarely after the turn-of-the-20th century.

Detailing

We notice a variety of detailing used in the cut-away jacket suits for younger boys in the 19th century. This was the principal jacket style by mid-century was the cut-away jacket. Suits with cut-away jackets appeared in the mid-19th century in a range of different styles. Many of these jackets were very plain while others were heavily decorated. The portrait here is an example of a very plain suit (figure 1). Other suits had elaborate detailing, often g with military styling. Piping, stripes, and embroidery were commonly employed in the detailing. The most striking such suits were the Zouave suits. Of course the best known suit style in the late-19th century was the Fauntleroy suit, one without military styling. The Fauntleroy jackets, however, came at a time when the cut-away jackets had for the most part gone out of style.

Colors

The Zouave suits were done in bright colors, often red and blue. Most other suits were one in muted colors, although the black-and-white photography of the day makes color difficult to assess. Most of the suits we note in the photographic record inthe 1860s and 70s when the jackets were most popular seem to be light-colored material. The Fauntleroy cut-away jackets of the 1880s and 90s were in contrast mostly dark colored.

Cut

The cut of the jacket varies as to how sharply the two sides separated. There were also differences in length. Fauntleroy cut-away jackets were especially small to show off fancy blouses to the best advantage. Other jackets were hardly cut away at all.

Connection

Cut away jackets were connected at the top in various ways. Some buttones near the collar. Others had tab connectors.

Pockets

Many cut-away jackets had breast pockets.

Sleeves

We notice two different types of sleeves, half sleeves and full sleeves. Half sleeves were shorter length sleeves, cut somewhere below the elbow. The actual lengths varies. A good example is an American boy wearing a half-sleeve ajcket about 860. Often the half sleeves were very wide, sometimes worm with blouses that had voluminous sleeves. Other cut-away jackets had full sleeves that extended to the wrist, sometimdes with a cuff. The bou here is wearing a full-length sleeve (figure 1).

Vests

The cut-away jacket suit was worn with and without vests and with a variety of blouses, both plain and fancy blouses.

Age Conventions

We are not sure about the age conventions involved with cut-away jacket suits. A major problem here is that we have few catalog from the mid-19th century (1860s-70s) when the jackets were most popular. Thus our assessment is primarily based on assessing the photographic record. They seem very common with pre-school boys and younger primary school boys. We see to see boys from about 3-8 years of age wearing these suits, but this is just an initial assessment. we are not entirely sure of the upper age level at this time. Our inintial assessment is that after about age 8 years boys started wearing more mature styles, but this has to be confirmed. We have not note boys over age 10 commonly wearing these suits. Age may have also affected styling, but this we are not yet sure about this and it needs further investigation. A complication here is that by the 1880s these jackets were going out of style there was one stykle that became very popular--the Fauntleroy suit. And te age conventions for Fauntleroy suits (1880s-90s) are not the same as for te standard cut-away jacket suits.

Pants

These jackets were normally worn with shortened leg pants, both kneepants and bloomer knickers. Some of the pants, espoecially those influence by the Zouave style, were quite vouminous. Quite a number of Ameican boys wearing these cut-away jackers are archived on HBC. A good example is Charles Fox in the 1860s.

Created: 3:06 AM 1/31/2006
Last updated: 11:37 PM 3/3/2008