Figure 1.--Amish boys dressed just like their fathers. One of the most destinctive items was the broad-brimmed straw hat. The only major difference is that the boys often went barefoot. The father here has taken his sons to a market at Kidron, Ohio.

Amish men and boys wear dark-colored suits, straight-cut coats without lapels, broadfall trousers, suspenders, solid-colored shirts, black socks and shoes, and black or straw broad-brimmed hats. The broad-brimmed straw hats are one of the most destinctive items of Amish dress. One the men and boys wore them. Their shirts fasten with conventional buttons, but their suit coats and vests fasten with hooks and eyes. They wear suspenders (braces) rather than belts. A reader writes, "Suspenders are an important part of male Amish dress for both men and boys. There is a local Indiana store that specializes in Amish clothing, although it contains no illustrations--just the list of items. But the catalog makes it quite clear that suspenders are vital because the Amish boys do not wear belts." Men wear actual suspenders. Boys may wear suspenderpants with suspender bands done in the same material as the psants. Amish men do not have mustaches, but they grow beards after they marry. The Amish do have a very distinctive children's dress. Boys wear the same clothes as men. The only clothing difference I know of is that many Amish boys go barefoot in the summer. The Amish feel these distinctive, but plain clothes encourage humility and separation from the world. Their clothing is not a costume; it is an expression of their faith.

Created: 10:14 PM 8/30/2007
Last updated: 10:14 PM 8/30/2007