Figure 1.-- The boy shown in the illustration here from "Ladies Home Journal" is about 12 years old and would undoubtedly be wearing either knee trousers or above-the-knee knickers. This means that he would need in addition to the union suit a suspender waist with supporters for his black long stockings or an underwaist with garters attached. Porosknit did not manufacture waist union suits (like E-Z or Nazareth), union suits which combined ordinary union suits for boys with the features of an underwaist (reinforcement straps, waist buttons, and attachments such as loops or pin tubes for the fastening of hose supporters. Perhaps one reason that the boy would feel like a man wearing the Porosknit union suit was the absence of underwaist features (specifically for children 13 years old or younger).

Chalmers of Amersterdam, New York made Porosknit fabric, a porous cotton knitted material for men's and boys' underwear that allowed perspiration to evaporate through its mesh-like construction. The company advertized in Ladies Home Journal. The company received the patent in 1903. The company made both two-piece underwear (separate undershirts and drawers) and the even more popular union suit which combined both shirt and drawers in a single garment. The boy shown in the picture is about 12 years old and would undoubtedly be wearing either knee trousers or above-the-knee knickers. This means that he would need in addition to the union suit a suspender waist with supporters for his black long stockings or an underwaist with garters attached.

Ladies Home Journal

As the oldest still publishing, most respected women's service magazine in the country, The Ladies' Home Journal has always focused on issues of crucial importance to millions of women. Since its first issue in December 1883. This long history make The Ladies Home Journal and invaluable source of information on American fashion trends. Its covered an incredibly wide range of topics beyond just fashion, from the latest medical research and consumer news to parenting know-how, workplace survival, good skincare, nutrition facts and much, much more. It was The Ladies Home Journal who sucessfully merged the elements and produced the right formula, becoming the top ladies magazine in America. The Journal both empowered women and applauded their growing power. We also notice patterns offered in the magazine.

Chalmers

Chalmers of Amersterdam, New York made Porosknit fabric. The company received the patent in 1903. We note several of their ads in the mid 1910s. An example is a Literary Digest ad in 1917. The company made shirts and knee-length drawers. We do not yet have much information on this company. The firm is the Chalmers Knitting Co. of Amsterdam, New York. They also made "Spring Needle Ribbed Underwear for Winter. All of the available information is from the 1910s. The full page ads that we have noted suggest that Chalmers was a substantial company. A reader writes, "Notice that the clothes were for summer and required suspender waist or garter waist to hold up outer clothes such as knickers and long stockings especially from what we know of the 1910 era. So the main purpose of the under clothes was to beat the heat. Also notice the tie back, I can only guess that elastic such as rubber was too expensive or did not last very long or both."

Product Line

The company made both two-piece underwear (separate undershirts and drawers) and the even more popular union suit which combined both shirt and drawers in a single garment. In 1911 men and boys often wore long underwear even in summer, but of a much lighter weight than in winter. The boy in the illustration is wearing a long-legged union suit with short sleeves, especially designed for summer wear, although Porosknit also made a union suit for boys with knee-length legs that ended about two inches above the knee. The caption is worth noting--stressing the idea that this brand of underwear makes a boy feel like a man (because he is wearing the same kind of underwear his father or older brother would wear) and also that the man feels like a boy (because of the freedom of movement and youthful feel of the underwear).

Porosknit Fabric

Porosknit was a porous cotton knitted material for men's and boys' underwear that allowed perspiration to evaporate through its mesh-like construction. This was developed at a time when long underwear was very common, even during thesummer. Poeosknit was thus a cooler alternative to standard long underwear material.

Illustration

The boy shown in the illustration from Ladies Home Journal (January 1911, p. 2) is about 12 years old and would undoubtedly be wearing either knee trousers or above-the-knee knickers. This means that he would need in addition to the union suit a suspender waist with supporters for his black long stockings or an underwaist with garters attached. Porosknit did not manufacture waist union suits (like E-Z or Nazareth), union suits which combined ordinary union suits for boys with the features of an underwaist (reinforcement straps, waist buttons, and attachments such as loops or pin tubes for the fastening of hose supporters. Perhaps one reason that the boy would feel like a man wearing the Porosknit union suit was the absence of underwaist features (specifically for children thirteen years old or younger).

Garment Deals

The as copy text read, "Porsknit summer Underwear For Men, For Boys. Makes a boy feel like a man; makes a man feel like a boy. Shirts and Drawers [not shown] Per Garment, For Men 50 cents; For boys 25 cents. Union Suits For Men $1.00; For Boys 50 cents. Illustrated "Porosknit" booklet sent on request. Chalmers Knitting Company, Amsterdam, N. Y. All "Porsknot" has this label. Trade Mark Porosknit Reg. U.S. Patent Office.

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Created: 1:21 AM 12/10/2009
Last updated: 1:21 AM 12/10/2009