Figure 1.--This snapshot shows Harry Hoffman and his son James, posing with their cat on a chair. The snapshot is an AZO postcard. It is not postally used, but we would guess was taken about 1905. Note the father's long frock coat. James wears a blouse with what looks like a detchable collar and a small bowtie. We think he is wearing knee pants rather than knickers, but it is a little difficult to tell. A reader writes, "By the way, I believe you are also correct about the knee pants rather than knickers. I think that is pretty clear by the way the trousers hang and their straight hems at the bottom."

HBC has followed the change in the popular color of boys' long stockings from darker shades (black, dark brown) to tan and beige. We noticed that the new fashion caught on in the 1920s when we begin to see tan and lighter shades being sold and illustrated in the mail order catalogues. By serendipity, I just came across a notice in a Wannamaker's advertisement for "children's long stockings" made of cotton in the Philadelphia Inquirer for April 28, 1904. The ad states, "Good tan long stockings are scarce" and "importers are rushing orders to Europe" because the domestic manufacturers can't satisfy the demand. Perhaps the fact that it was April accounts for the new fashion for tan long stockings (black was the standard color, especially during the winter). I think this shows that the interest in tan long stockings for boys and girls occurred a little earlier than we thought. In 1904 the style was still in the minority (in big eastern cities such as New York and Philadelphia). And perhaps the need to order tan stockings from Europe in 1904 shows that European countries such as Germany were already ahead of the American trend. But tan long stockings for boys and girls (to be worn with short trousers and skirts) did not really become general throughout the country, especially in rural areas, until the 1920s. There is unfortunately no illustration, just a notice in small print, so there is no point in scanning this example. But it might be worth noting this fact on our color page for American long stockings. In the 1920s and 1930s we begin to get colors like fawn, champagne, light tan, camel, etc. in Wards and Sears catalogues. A reader writes, "I agree that tan stockings were not so common in the 1900s ans 10s, expecept perhaps in large eastern cities like Philadelphia." That was probably the case. It appears to have been largely seasonal, mothers using them to be worn with the lighter-colored clothes worn during the summer. Another reader writes, "YOur comment, with which I agree, that Harry Hoffman is wearing tan or brown long stockings (rather than the more usual black) in this photo makes me think this might be a good example to use to illustrate the tan stockings ad in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The period is just right--the mid-1900s.

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Created: 4:33 AM 6/10/2009
Last updated: 4:55 PM 6/11/2009