Figure 1.--While not always the case, boys fpr dressy occassions commonly wore long stockings with flat-weave. The somewhat unusual aspect of this porteait, is that often black or white stockings we used with dressy outfits. This German portrait is undated, but we believe was taken in the early 1920s. Click on the image for a fuller discussion of this portrait.

Images of boys wearing long stockings, both ribbed and plain, proliferate during the 1920s. The more formal plain weave or at least very fine-gauge ribbing (which gives the appearance of smoothness) seems to predominate, but there is also substantial evidence of more obviously ribbed long stockings. By the 1920s most long stockings were worn with either short trousers or knickers, but knee pants persisted also, especially in Europe. We see ribbed stockings being worn in some countries such as Germany, but flat-weave stockings were much more common. The flat weaves stockings wereespecially common or dress wear, but even school photographs and boys in casual situations seem to have mostly wore flat-knit stickings. This seems to have been the case in most countries, although we have few images from Scabdanavia and the Soviet Union. Long stockings were commonly worn in those countries, but we are not sure if ribbed stockings were popular. Countries for which we do have images such as American and German show that flt weave stockings were the most common. We think that ribbed stockings were especially common in winter, but so not yet have enough winter images to coinfirm this. We know that white stockings were rarely wibbed. Black stockings were available in ribbed and flat weaves, but we are less sure about other colors. We note that often there are conventions associated with ribbed and unribbed stockings, such as flat-weaved stockings being wirn for dressy occassions. Or ribbed stockings in cold weather. But we think that often the choice was simply the stockings that were clean and available on any given day. We note a fashion for novelty stockings. The fashion does not seem to have lasted very long, and there is some indication that these stockings were meant to appeal to girls more than boys. Hull House, a settlement house in Chicago, however, shows a Chicago boy wearing the novelty stockings with a short pants button-on outfit in the late 1920s or early 1930s The mail order catalogs of the 1920s are a valuable source of information about the characteristics of hosiery and other garments. Catalogs offered both both ribbed and plain weave stockings.

Hosiery Trends

Hosiery trends were nore varied in the 1920s than the 1930s. Long stockings were still the dominant hosiery type. Most Americans boys wore knickers and generally with long stockings. We begin, however to see kneesocks. Some younger boys during the summer might wear three-quarter socks with knee pants or short pants, but long stockings were also common with younger children. These trends varied from country to country. Short pants were more common in Germany and we see boys wearing both kneesocks and long stockings. We note a group of 12-14 year old students wearing short pant suits with open collars. At least one of the boys wears ribbed stockings while others wear knee socks. The diversity we see during this period can be seen in a California family during the late or mid-1920s (c.1925). Two boys wear the common plain-weave long stockings with their dress-up clothes. The youngest boy wears beige stockings (note the supporters), the middle boy wears black long stockings (apparently also of plain weave), and the oldest boy knee socks (which are clearly ribbed). Note the sailor suit of the middle boy. Canadian boys in above-the-knee knickers can be seen in another 1925 photograph. This picture is interesting because it shows both the traditional long black stockings of plain texture and the newer-style knee socks. American boys often wanted to wear knee socks, whereas their mothers frequently insisted on long stockings, not only for the additional protection of their sons’ knees but also because they thought the look of covered knees more proper.

Types

We note two basic types of long stocking weaves during the 1920s, flat (plain) weave and ribbed weaves. In reviewing the images archived on HBC we note that the vast majority seem to be flat-weave stockings. Note the very long knee pants in the next example. This German boy, also photographed in the 1920s (probably quite early 1920s), wears black plain-weave long stockings with a light-colored sailor suit with white collar and cuffs. But we also moted ribbed-weave stockings. An unidentified German toddler in the 1920s is a good example.

Dress-up

We tend to see boys weating flat-weave stockings when dressing up. This was, however, not always the case and we see quite a number of boys wearing ribbed stockinmgs when dressing up. We note two American brothers, the older of whom wears a knickers suit with adult-style shirt and tie while the younger wears a sailor suit with short pants and ribbed black stockings(figure 1). An American boy, Richard Strock, of about 9-10 years of age wears above-the-knee knickers about 1921-22. Richard wears the new form-fitting brown or dark tan ribbed stockings. These stockings are quite dressy in appearance. Note that Richard wears a natty bow tie. As could be predicted, boys dressed for their first communions in both Europe and America tended to wear short trousers or knee-pants outfits with smooth-weave black or white stockings. Canadian boys, especially in Quebec, wore long black stockings of smooth texture for several decades, so that it is sometimes difficult to pinpoint the date very accurately. A portrait of a Canadian boy is tentatively dated in the 1920s, but the quite short trousers and the obvious length of the stockings mean that it could be as late as the 1940s or even 1950s. Notice how form-fitting and dressy the stockings are. A Brooklyn boy wears very long white stockings with short trousers in the 1920s for his First Communion, while an older boy wears black stockings with knickers. Whether black or white, the stockings are extremely smooth in weave. Two Latino boys (we aren’t sure from which country they come) also wear white stockings for first communion in the same decade. These boys wear long knee pants sailor suits with white gloves and seem to come from a very upper-class family. They might be the sons of a diplomat. German most commonly wore black stockings with shorts or knee pants for religious ceremonies. The white stockings often worn by American boys for First Communion were much less common in Germany. This German boy and girl are typical, the boy wearing black stockings with a short t trousers sailor suit while the girl wears white stockings. Both are of smooth weave. Another German brother-sister pair also from the 1920s, shows a similar brother-sister combination, with very much the same pattern of dark sailor suit for the boy and white dress for the girl. Smoothly textured stockings are required for both costumes. A somewhat more varied example from Germany, from the mid-1920s, shows a class of German boys dressed in first communion outfits. These boys wear short trousers with knee socks, long trousers, or shorts with long stockings. The boy with long stockings wears beige rather than the more customary black stockings, but they are clearly of plain rather than obviously ribbed texture. Two additional first communion outfits from the 1920s illustrate the same trend of smoothly textured hosiery. We note a German boy, again in a sailor suit and short trousers, wearing the traditional black stockings. We have the image of a German boy in 1929 wearing very smooth-textured tan long stockings with a knitted short-pants suit. The closed-toe sandals indicate the desire for a very dressy appearance. Many German boys had sailor suits for dresswear and commonly wore long stockings with them. We note a family portrait of two German boys in sailor suits, white dickeys, and plain-weave stockings—again from the mid-1920s. An interesting family photograph, probably taken in the mid-1920s, shows the standard dress-up gear for boys of about 10 and 13 in the Germany of the time. These boys wear short pants suits with long stockings in lighter and darker shades of brown. The stockings appear to be closely woven and smooth textured. However, they might well be finally ribbed in a narrow gauge. A Belgian boy wears traditional first communion dress in 1923. His sailor style suit has a somewhat unusual square collar of contrasting material, but he wears the standard knee pants with ornamental buttons and smooth black long stockings.
Casual Play Wear

We note boys wearing both flat and ribbed stockings for casual wear. Here a factor is seasonlity. The ribbed stockings were more common in cold weather. We observe two German boys in heavy stockings—beige and brown—one astride a toy horse. The stockings appear to be of smooth weave but closer examination reveals them to be of fine-gauge ribbed weave, probably at least partly woolen for warmth. Note the ornamental buttons on one of the boys’ shorts, which are an obvious carry-over from the older tradition of knee pants. We note an informally dressed German boy appears with his family in a striped middy blouse, knee pants, and long black stockings of plain weave during the decade. We note an unidentified American boy on a tricycle in 1927 with a short pants suit, open collar, and plain-weave beige long stockings (Fig 1).

School Wear

Most of the school images we have found show boys weaing flat-weave long stockings. We believe this is primrily a function of the flat weave stockings being the most common. We have the 1927 photograph of a Canadian boy from Montreal named Fowler, obviously dressed in his best school wear. He wears a sweater with a necktie, long knee-pants-style short trousers, and the traditional plain black long stockings familiar to schoolboys for decades past. Many Canadian boys wore long stockings during the 1920s and 1930s, partly because of the chilly weather and partly because Canada (especially Quebec) tended to be conservative about children’s dress. A German boy on his first day of school is seen with a short pants sailor suit and black long stockings sitting rather self-satisfiedly with his goodie cone. The photo dates from the mid-1920s apparently. Note the smooth weave of the black stockings. Another image shows a German schoolboy of about 8-9 years old, apparently from a somewhat wealthy family, wearing fashionable schoolboy dress—a striped middy blouse, dark knee pants, and plainly knit black stockings. A German gymnasium class, photographed in 1927, shows all the boys wearing short trousers. The class seems to be about equally divided between long stockings (black or dark brown) and knee socks. Note that the boys wear open collars or sailor suits rather than formal jackets and ties. The stockings worn seem to be of plain or narrow-gauge texture.

Youth Groups

Baden Powell chose knee socks for the original Boy Scout uniform. This became the basic convention for Scouts and Cubs around the world. Knee socks weee also adopted by many other youth groups. Not all boys always wore the standard uniform. Thus we see some boys wearing long stockings with their uniforms. A Latvian Boy Scout wears plain black long stockings with his Scout uniform in place of the more usual knee socks.

Country Trends

We have found boys in most countries commonly wearing flat-weave stockings. Ribbed stockings seemed especially common in northern coutries. We have, however, found relatively few examples. What we are not sure about is if the photographic record is an accurate reflection of actial popularity. Many American boys continued to wear long stockings in the 1920s. We note an American boy about 6 or 7 years old, possibly from Chicago, riding a tricycle in a white sailor suit with long white dressy-looking stockings. The same year an American ad for Kazoo suspender waists for boys shows a teenage boy (possibly 14 or 15) wearing black, smoothly textured long stockings over his summer-style (sleeveless) union suit. Suspender waists had been a popular means of supporting long stockings for older boys during the previous decade, but after the early 1920s they seem to have disappeared in favor of regular underwaists with supporters attached or various styles of garter waists. The young Warren Benedict in 1929 was from Crawfordsville, Indiana (aged about 6). He wears the style of beige long stockings that had become popular by the late 1920s. Again plain weave is obvious. Warren’s sister, however, wears a somewhat more puzzling style of hosiery, which is textured or patterned to just to the knee level and apparently plain above the knee. This style of hosiery seems to be quite unusual.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/bio/op/b/bop-benwc.html"
http://histclo.com A Belgian boy from the same period wears a Norfolk-styled dark suit with short pants and plain black stockings. These trousers should perhaps be referred to as knee pants (note the ornamental buttons), but the distinction between knee pants and short pants was beginning to blur in the 1920s. Again, smooth textured stockings seem to have been a standard part of the First Communion uniform. We note two Canadian boys (from the Woolever family) wearing long black smooth-textured stockings at a beach in Ontario during 1920. Ribbed stockings were more common in Canada than many other countries, but even in Canada we note boys wearing flat weave stockings in most images in our archive. We see another Montreal boy, named Kastner, in 1929 wearing the popular beige long stockings with knitted shorts, a sweater, and a shirt and tie. The dressy beige long stockings are clearly of a close, narrow-gauge knit. Notice also the extended length of the stockings, which cover almost the entire upper thigh and would require rather short supporters (always adjustable of course on the typical underwaist or garter waist).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/bio/op/k/bop-kastj.html"
http://histclo.co A young Czech boy in a smock wears ribbed brown long stockings (1925). Despite the ribbing, these stockings seem to fit rather loosely, possibly because they are a bit too large, because they have lost their elasticity, or because they are worn over long underwear. A Dutch boy with his bicycle in a light-colored short pants suit with very smooth-looking black long stockings (possibly his normal school wear). Perhaps the Dutch boy came from a very conservative family or else wore long stockings to protect his knees from chill while cycling. German middle-class boys typically wore black long stockings with knee pants suits. This example of two Germam boys in sailor suits shows the common plain-weave black stockings. Not surprisingly, many of our images of boys wearing plain textured long stockings are German, since long stockings were very commonly worn in that country during the first half of the twentieth century. An unusual image of a German brother and sister, identically dressed in matching dresses, shows both children wearing rather dressy beige stockings at some point during the 1920s. Notice the smooth, form-fitting texture. A 1923 Christmas image of a German family shows a boy of about 11 or 12 years of age sitting on the floor with short pants and dark long stockings, either brown or black. Close inspection shows that these are very likely finely ribbed for elasticity. A Swedish boy in 1925 with tan plain long stockings worn with knee pants (note the ornamental buttons) was photographed in a traveling scene. The stockings seem quite smooth, but note the newer color—tan or brown rather than the more old-fashioned black. We see a Russian boy in knee pants and white, obviously smooth, long stockings in 1925. (Fig. 1).

Novelty Stockings

We note a fashion for novelty stockings. The fashion does not seem to have lasted very long, and there is some indication that these stockings were meant to appeal to girls more than boys. Hull House, a settlement house in Chicago, however, shows a Chicago boy wearing the novelty stockings with a short pants button-on outfit in the late 1920s or early 1930s

Color Trends

We know that white stockings were rarely wibbed. Black stockings were available in ribbed and flat weaves, but we are less sure about other colors. Another German boy sitting in a chair wears the increasingly popular smooth beige or light tan long stockings with his short pants suit. This photograph illustrates not only the smoothness of the stockings but their extended length since trousers were beginning to get much shorter in the late 1920s and 1930s. It is clear that this boy attaches his garters, suspended from a Leibchen, quite high on his upper leg. American boys continued to wear long stockings with short pants suits, which had mainly replaced knee pants suits in the United States by mid-decade. These American boys wear rather long-cut short pants with their tan stockings, which are clearly of the dressy, fine-gauge weave. If these stockings are ribbed, they are meant to appear smooth. Most short trousers suits by 1925 had shorter trousers than the ones shown here. We have a photo of the young Wistar Morris in 1921 wearing a short pants white sailor suit with dressy smooth-weave beige stockings that were now often preferred to black stockings. An interesting photo of 1924 (the Wright brothers of Louisiana) illustrates the popular beige or light tan long stockings of smoothly woven texture. The younger two boys wear their long stockings with short pants outfits that allow their supporters to show when they are seated whereas the older two boys wear the same kind of stockings with above-the-knee knickers. But black stockings were still common. When worn for formal occassions they were almost always flat weave. We note an American boy, also in a white sailor suit, with black plain stockings (1922. Note the glasses. Belgian boys continued to wear dark knee pants or short pants suits for First Communion. We note a Belgian boy kneeling at a prie dieu in 1925, wears the required black smooth stockings with his knee pants suit. At a family reunion of the Rupp family in Pittsburgh in 1922, most of the boys wear plain black long stockings, either with above-the-knee knickers or with button-on knee pants. Warren Sonneman (aged 8) wears smooth black long stockings with a tweed knee pants suit at a White House Easter egg roll during 1923. Some boys wear white long stockings for formal occassions, but this was not as common as in the 1910s. They were always flat-weave stockings. Dressy white long stockings were popular for certain Italian boys in Italy. We note an Italian boy a with hoop wearing elegant short trousers with ornamental buttons and very smooth white plain stockings with strap shoes. We see the same boy about a year later (1925-26) dressed in the same style of white stockings for his first communion photograph.

Conventions

We note that often there are conventions associated with ribbed and unribbed stockings, such as flat-weaved stockings being wirn for dressy occassions. Or ribbed stockings in cold weather. But we think that often the choice was simply the stockings that were clean and available on any given day. A mid-1920s photo of the Walton brothers (the older of whom is famous for found Wal-Mart) shows both Sam Walton and his younger brother, wearing long stockings. Sam, the older boy, wears plain black stockings with either above-the-knee knickers or short pants. Bud, the younger of the two, is seen with very widely ribbed tan long stockings worn with short pants. Note Bud’s long underwear, which makes the stockings somewhat bulky in appearance. As far as we can tel here, there is no reason why one boy would wear flat-weave stockings and the other boy ribbed stockings.

Age Trends

We have not yet noted a definitive age trend as to stocking weaving. We notice boys of all ages wearing both ribbed nd flat-weave stockings. We note some older American boys wearing ribbed stockings, but we are unsure just how common this was. As far as we can tell children of all ages wore both types. The Ritchie brothers (American) of different ages wore both beige and dark long stockings in 1925, apparently with above-the-knee knickers suits. The stockings seem very smoothly textured. A German boy in a sailor suit (1920), playing with blocks and a picture book in his nursery, wears extremely well-fitting beige long stockings that are intended to look almost like natural skin. These stockings have a sheen and are clearly knitted of very fine-grade yarns. It was too early for rayon mixtures in this decade, but perhaps the cotton was mixed with a bit of silk.

Clothing Catalogs

The mail order catalogs of the 1920s are a valuable source of information about the characteristics of hosiery and other garments. Catalogs offered both both ribbed and plain weave stockings. A 1922 Eaton’s offering in Canada shows both boys and girls wearing ribbed black stockings. The boy wears his hosiery over the traditional long underwear (a union suit). This boy would undoubtedly be dressing in either short trousers (the Canadians continued to call such garments “knee pants,” unlike their American neighbors not making the distinction between short pants and knee pants) or above-the-knee knickers. The fine-gauge ribbing gives the appearance of smoothness here. A 1927 Eaton’s knickers suit with a Norfolk-style belt advertised in the Canadian mail order catalog for 1927 shows the tweed knickers suits for schoolboys that were becoming standard for older boys and often replacing the short pants suits of earlier years. This suit is illustrated as being worn with clearly ribbed long stockings. A Wards 1922 catalog in America offered both ribbed and non-ribbed stockings in 1922. See the detail (figure 1) from the same Wards page (the second image). Girls often preferred the “fine mercerized” variety (smooth weave) for dress since it was more like their mothers’ grown-up hosiery. A 1924 Sears ad for stockings shows the heavy texture that was popular with many mothers, both for reasons of warmth and of durability. This ad makes a point of stockings of heavy weight designed specifically for boys. The ribbing produces an almost waffle texture when seen in close-up. But the same advertisement also offers smoother and dressier stockings for both boys and girls. On the same page of the Sears 1924 catalog we note the specification of “Derby rib” stockings in addition to the finer weaves. I don't understand the term "Derby weave". A 1927 Sears ad for ribbed stockings (see Fig.2) clearly shows a texture that was very popular. These stockings are advertised as equally suitable for boys and girls and seem to be principally aimed at school children. Finally, at the end of the decade, we note in the 1928-29 Sears catalog “novelty” patterned stockings for boys and girls. These have a very sporty look with their plaid patterns and heavy ribbing.

Magazine Illustrations

Magazine illustrations are not as difinitive as photographs becaus illustrators for a range of reasons ,ay not be accurately depicting a scene. One illustrator which did draw very accurately was Norman Rockwell. We see a 1920 Saturday Evening Post cover drawing of dressed-up children--"Fun Fair". The girl wears flat-weave white long stockings and the boy black ribbed stockings. This seems to be quite an accurate rendering, but looks a liitle more like the 1910s and 20s. This is a not uncommon phenomenon with illustrators who may not be up on the latest fashions. Another Rockwell cover drawing from about the same time, "Traveling Companions" shows a boy wearing flat-weave black stockings. The Rockwell drawings are interesting because he gave sich attention to clohing detail and he worked over several decades.