Figure 1.--The Boston boy here was photographed at Notman Photo Co. He is unidentified and the portrait is undated. We wuld guess it was taken at the turn of the 20th century. He wears a black knee pants suit with a wide white collar and white floppy bow. We can not tell if it is a Eton or Peter Pan collar. He has black long stockings, the domonant color at the time.

Boys and girls have worn the same color long stockings. There wew, however, some gender differences. Boys commonly wore dark colored stockings, black, navy blue, or brown. Unfortunately it is impossible to tell what color stockings boys were wearing in our photographic archive. Black was especially common, particularly in the late-19th and early 20th centuries. Bith boys and girls wore black stockings. Boys and girls also ore white stockings, but white was much more common for girls than boys. We know that many other shades were worn. The popularity of these different colors varied substantially over time.

Black

Black was especially common for long stockings. It is not always possible to destinguish between black and various dark shades in the photographic record. We are fairly certain about some photographs, but less so with others. We know that black was very common for long stockings. This popularity, however, varied over time. I think it is clear from the photographs that black was not nearly as common in the 1870s and 80s as they became in the 90s. American boys commonly wore long stockings in the late 19th century. We believe that the colors of long stockings were quite varied with many boys wearing blue, brown green and grey stockings in dark shades. This changed in the 1890s when black became almost universal. We are unsure why this change occurred. We even see children wearing black long stockings with white and other light-colored outfits. We note a Sears catalog cover showing all the children wearing black long stockings. We even see boys wearing black stockings with white or other light colored outfits. We have archived many examples of this. An example is the Sanborn boy in 1890. The Lowe brothers in the early 1890s is another good example. A 1903 stocking ad shows both a girl and boy dressed in white and wearing black long stockings. Black long stockings were worn both for formal occassions and for everyday wear. We see Harold Howes in the 1900s wearing black long stockings with dresses, tunuc suits, and sailor suits as he grew up. After World war I when tan shades became very common, black came to be seen as a more formal shade.

Blue

We know that blue long stockings were worn. We think that they were mostly dark, muted shades. Vlue was a popular color for boy's suits and we believe that boys in the 1860s-80s commonly wore stockings that matched are were close to the color of the suit. We notice some images suggesting some children wore brightly colored stockings. One shoe advertisement shows a boy wearing bright blue stockings and his sister nright red stockings, we think in the 1880s. We think the cnvention of matching the suit or dress with the stocking weakened somewhat in the 1890s when black stockings became increasingly common and were worn with outfits of every color. We note an Golden Rule Store adverisement for several different types of boys stockings in 1922 offered black, brown, cordovan, and white, but not blue. This is curious that there were no blue stockings, especiially as blue was such a popular color for boys. We believe this was in part because black was close to the dark blue/ navy suits that boys commonly wore at the time. A reader wtites, "In all my reading of old catalogues and newspaper ads, I have never seen an advertisement for blue long stockings. For really formal occasions, at least for boys over ten, black stockings were almost always the rule, even into the early 1920s, if boys were wearing dark blue or dark gray suits. The tan stockings began to be common for short trousers and lighter colored suits and sportier outfits with sweaters. But for church or really dress-up occasions, most boys continued to wear black stockings with knickers--or at least very dark colors, gray or 'cordovan' (dark brown with a slight reddish cast). Black stockings were nearly always worn with dark blue knicker suits. Patterned knee socks with striped cuffs came in during the later 1920s and 1930s, I believe. Of course, I'm speaking here oof American boys' fashions. Lighter colors came earlier in Europe, I think. But even in Europe, I don't think I have ever come across blue long stockings for boys--at least not in the 20th century. Afactor here is thast boys commonly weore dark or navy blue suits and black went well with these suits."

Brown

We know that brown long stockings were worn. Clothing catalogs list colored stockings. We think that they were mostly dark, muted shades. Brown was a popular color for boy's suits. Suit colors are also mentioned in clothing catalogs. We also and we believe that boys in the 1860s-80s commonly wore stockings that matched or were close to the color of their suist. The black and white photography of the day makes it difficult to assess this. But there are a range of sources confirming that mothers matched the suits and stockings. The two most important are paintings and colorized portraits. We note an unidentified American boy wearing brown long stockings that matched his brown Fauntleroy suit. We also note a tined cabinent card that shows an American boy wearing an overcoat, suit, and stockings, all matching brown items. The portrait is undated, but looks to have been taken in the 1880s. This changed somewhat in the 1890s when black stockings became increasingly common and were worn with suits of every color. Light brown shades or tan long stockings became very popular after World War I. Dark brown was not common, but the tan shades were.

Burgundy

We note cordovan mentioned as a color for boys stockings in the 1922 Golden Rule Stores clothing advertisement. This was a color similar to burgandy.

Green

We know that green long stockings were worn. We think that they were mostly dark, muted shades. Green was a color used for boy's suits, but we are not entirely sure just how popular. And we believe that boys in the 1860s-80s commonly wore stockings that matched are were close to the color of the suit. This changed somewhat in the 1890s when black stockings vecame increasingly common and were worn with suits of every color.

Grey

We know that grey long stockings were worn. We think that they were mostly dark, muted shades. Grey was a popular color for boy's suits and we believe that boys in the 1860s-80s commonly wore stockings that matched are were close to the color of the suit. This changed somewhat in the 1890s when black stockings vecame increasingly common and were worn with suits of every color. We think that grey stockings were also worn un the 1920s and 30s, but were not nearly as popular as the tan and beige stockings.

Red

There were also bright colors like red in the 19th century, although we are not sure how common they were. A major problem we have here is the black and white photography of the day which leave us unable to identify colors, except perhaps black and white. Red would have shown up as a dark color. We suspect that the red was a kind of muted shade, but we are not sure. I also recall from Little Lord Fauntleroy that Cedie had red stockings before moving to England. We think that some colors like red were worn in the late 19th century. We note in the beginning of Mrs. Burnett's book Little Lord Fauntleroy that Cedric wore red stockings. We note an shoe advertisement showung a girl wearing red stockings at about the same tine. We are not sure about the shade of red and how common such colors wore. The black and white photography of the day provide few insights here. A reader writes, "I was interested in your comments about red long stockings being noted as part of Cedric's wardrobe in Little Lord Fauntleroy (1885). I am not sure about the 19th century. As far as I know, red stockings were not much worn by boys in the United States during the 20th century, but we do note "Blizzard Worsted Wool Long Stockings" being offered in Eaton's 1940 catalog in Canada with "Cardinal" as one of the color options. This meant a darkish red, I believe. The other color options were "Dark Fawn" and "Heather Brown." These long stockings would haved been worn with short trousers or skirts and were obviously designed for exceptionally cold weather. The colors were designed to appeal to sport-loving children. These stockings appear on the same page that shows a boy playing football with long black ribbed stockings worn with short trousers."

Tan/Beige (Light brown)

The popularity of these different light brown (tan/beige) colors varied substantially over time. We also notice light shades of tan and brown. These tan or light-brown shades were one of many colors used for long stockings. We do note note these tan colors to any extent during the 19th century. We do begin to see them in the ealy-20th century. These shades became especially common after World War I (1914-18). These tan shades were not at all common before the War. We are not sure just why these tan shades all of a sudden because popular. Possibly it was the increasing popularity of short pants and acceptance of bare legs for children. This would also seem in keeping with the increasing trend for informality. Another factor was that brown was a popular color for boys' clothing so tan/beign would go with many outfits. Of course these tan/beige stockings were worrn with many colored outfits. We are, however, not at all sure. We note all kinds of diiferent names being used for these tan shades and their both light and medium browns. It is not possible to discern actual hues in the available black and white photographs. It is also impossible to destinguish between the tan shades and grey in the black-and-white photograph of the day. The tan shades, however, were much more common thn grey. We can assess the relative darkness. A good example is Unidentified American family, probably in the late 1920s. Boys wearing knickers were more likely to wear black long stockings, or by the 930s, patterened kneesocks. Girls more commonly wore these tan shades. Younger boys also wore the tan shades, often with short pants.

White

Boys also wore white stockings, although they were more common for girls. White stockings were worn by younger boys for dresswear, but white was more common for girls. Boys generally wore then for formal occassions and when dressing up. We see them being worn for events like First Communion and weddings. Girls also wore them for formal occassiins, but also wore them for day to day wear. Long white stockings were briefly worn by American boys from about the turn of the century until the 1920s when stockings were mostly replaced by kneesocks. White stockings were worn in the late 19th century, but not commonly boys. After World War I, the wearing of white long stockings declined sharply in the 1920s--even for formal dress outfits. Dark or stripped stockings were much more common. White stockings were often worn with a dressy outfit. Long stockings continued to be worn into the 1940s, but American boys did not commonly wear white ones.

Other Colors

I also note colored illustrtions from the period showing bright colors. Of course illustrtions may have overemphasized color, but the question of color I think is an interesting one tht HBC needs to address. We do not commonly note boys wearing bright shades, but our information is still realtively limited.

Created: 10:20 PM 3/11/2007
Last updated: 12:41 AM 4/10/2012