Figure 1.--Most portraits of children wearing dressy clothes show them wearing flat-weve stockings rather than ribbed stockings. This seems to have been a generalized pattern in many different countries. Here we see a Germn boy in the 1910s.

Long stockings were often very finely ribbed but in such a way as to look smooth. The custom in colder climates of wearing long underwear underneath long stockings complicated the problem of smooth fit and the avoidance of a bulky appearance, but by the early decades of the 20th century ribbed and non-ribbed stockings were equally form-fitting. Or to put the matter a bit more accurately, even many plain-weave stockings were actually ribbed but so finely ribbed that the texture was elegantly smooth. At this point, stockings made with an obvious wide rib began to take on a certain sporty or rugged look that boys might especially like. But girls wore these sporty stockings also, so that even with the wider ribs, gender became only one of several factors to be considered. Highly textured stockings (not obviously ribbed) also made their appearance. Early on, these could give legs the appearance of almost being upholstered like a tufted chair or sofa. But textured stockings tended to be a somewhat specialized choice. Most popular in this category were American children’s stockings in the late 1930s and early 1940s that were described as being of a “heather” mixture with something approaching a salt-and-pepper appearance similar to tweed.. To complicate matters even further, we notice that obviously ribbed stockings were sometimes worn for dressy occasions and with quite formal trousers and suits. Thus, for instance, we observe that the violin prodigy Yehudi Menuhin wore ribbed black stockings in 1924 at the age of 8 with trousers in which he was about to perform a concert in San Francisco, and also that a few years later (1929) at the age of about 13, he wore plain black stockings with short knee pants as part of his regular school or street dress when visiting the United States. These examples illustrate the point that not even relative formality and informality necessarily determined the choice of ribbed or non-ribbed long stockings. The widely used American and Canadian mail order catalogs such as Sears, Montgomery Ward, and Eaton’s confirm the fact that at least in North America both smoothly knit and obviously ribbed long stockings continued to be available throughout the 20th century up through at least the 1950s at which point long stockings for children ceased to be widely worn in the Western hemisphere. We also see both ribbed and smooth-weave stockings in Europe during the same period. On both sides of the Atlantic smooth-weave stockings seem to have predominated over ribbed stockings, but one of the problems in deciding the relative popularity of the two types is that many of the available photographs do not clearly show whether stockings are plain or ribbed, especially when a fine rib may have been worn or when the photograph is not sufficiently clear or detailed.

The 1900s

We see an explosion of snapshots as a result if the Kodak Brownie in the first decade of the 20th century. Thus for the first time, we have large numbers of casual photographs, so we see children wearing long stockings in casual settings rather than just formal portraits. We note both nany examples of both ribbed and non-ribbed stockings. We are often unable to assess available images. It is no a;ways clear as to wehther flat weave or ribbed stockings were worn. We note children wearing both flat and ribbed long stockings. As far as we can tell, however, the flat-weave stickings were by far the most common. At least this is what mom purchased in the greatest quantities and is what the larger number of children are wearing. We do not know if the boys and girls had their own preferences here. The flat weave stockings seem to have been preferred when dressing up. We have seem boys and girls wearing ribbed stockings when dressing up, but the flat weave seems to have been much more popular when dressing up, especially for formal occassions. We believe that children wore both types of ling stockings to school. Ribbed stockings may have been especially common at schools in in Canadian and other norther countries. Our information is, however, limited. We do not yet have an adequcate collection of images to make country assessments. Ribbed stockings were particularly warm. We believe that ribbed stockings were especially common in northern countries like Canada, Scandinavia, and Russia but we do not yet have the images needed to demonstrate this.

The 1910s

Both ribbed and non-ribbed stockings can be seen in the visual evidence from the 1910s. Plain stockings seem to predominate, partly because HBC’s archives show numerous instances of white long stockings, which were almost always worn for dressy occasions and were all but invariably knitted in smooth textures. Most boys in dressy outfits wear flat-weave long stockings. This is observeable in numerous images arvhived on HBC. Some boys may have worn ribbed stockings for dressy occassions, especially during the winter, but fla-weave stockings were much more common. We notice both ribbed and flat-weave (unribbed stockings) being worn in several countries. They seem more common in northern countries, but we hasve fewer images from those countries. Black long stockings were still very common in the 1910s, but we begin to see some differences. White stockings were still worn by younger boys. And we begin to see tan shades like beige. Color affected ribbing to a degree. We very rarely note white ribbed stockings. We also see tan shades, especially during the late 1910s. We are not sure if ribbed tan long stockings were worn in the 1910s. We suspect they were, but do not have any images showing this. We note flat and and ribbed weave stockings being worn year round, but there was a distinct seasonality. Chilfren mostly wore flat-weave stockings during the summer. We note ribbed stockings being commonly worn in northerly countries during the winter.

The 1920s

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.

The 1930s

We continue to see evidence of both ribbed and fine-weave hosiery during the 1930s. An Amercan Fashion Service illustration from the early part of the decade shows boys wearing ribbed long stockings with knickers suits and ribbed knee socks with short trousers. The ribbing gives a sporty look that boys probably liked, and the ribbed long stockings seem to complement the corduroy knickers of the period.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/photo/pub/news/pncus-frs01.html"
http://histclo.com/photo/pub/news/pncus-frs01.html During the 1930s we note a German boy with his mother wearing a tweed short pants suit with ribbed beige stockings. This suit is somewhat more informal than most short pants suits of the period. Note the darning on the knee of one stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/pants/chron/20/1930/pc20d30-hos.html"
http://histclo.com/style/pants/chron/20/1930/pc20d30-hos.html About 1930 we observe a different German boy in rather curiously textured but non- ribbed long stockings with a top turnover design. These stockings look as if they were longer versions of knee socks and seem to highly unusual. They obviously have to be worn with round garters rather than supporters attached to a Leibchen. The somewhat mottled texture looks as though it were of woolen knit.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-top.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-top.html A Sears ad for boys’ socks and stockings (1930) offers both “fine gauge” and “ribbed” stockings for both genders. But the brand of stockings is called “Boyville,” indicating the primary sales target. Both the fine ribbed and wider ribbed stockings seem to be equally popular.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/30/s30hos.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/30/s30hos.html A Wards ad for boys and girls’ long stockings the same year (1930) shows different widths of ribbing. In one of the illustrations on this page the boy wears the wider ribbed stockings whereas the girl wears a narrower rib. But this distinction does not hold throughout the line. Boys and girls wore ribbing of all widths and even very fine-gauge knit stockings for dress-up occasions. Note that these stockings seem to be worn mainly with knee pants (note the ornamental buttons) of quite short length. The shortness of the pants, however, could simply be a means of displaying the length of the stockings to better advantage. Although several colors are for sale, black seems to dominate.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/30/hos/hos30.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/30/hos/hos30.html A Darvey family portrait of 1931 shows the youngest boy wearing a light-weight short trousers suit with ribbed black long stockings. These stockings seem to be rather heavy for the light-colored suit. The boy is quite dressed up. Note the striped necktie.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/us/fam/1930/usf-1931d.html"
http://histclo.com/country/us/fam/1930/usf-1931d.html The two identically dressed Barad twins, American boys, are dressed in nicely fitting ribbed brown long stockings (1931). The boys may have preferred ribbed stockings to plainer-weave ones.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/bio/op/b/bop-barad.html"
http://histclo.com/bio/op/b/bop-barad.html Another Sears advertisement (Summer and Spring, 1931) offers both ribbed and “fine gauge” hosiery for children, but the fine gauge is touted as the “best seller.” Some of the ribbed models seem to be of heavier and more durable weight. Note the “rayon plating” on one of the examples.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/31/s31ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/31/s31ls.html In 1933 we note a Wards Spring and Summer catalog advertising “Extra Long Playhard” stockings in both “fine rib” and “Derby rib” style. No gender distinction is implied, but the longer length of these stockings is featured prominently—an obvious appeal to mothers and children who didn’t want hose supporters peeping out from beneath the shorter trousers and skirts then in fashion.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/33/w33ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/33/w33ls.html HBC has an interesting photo (dated 1935) of a New York boy wearing rather soiled beige stockings with obvious ribbing. He is relaxing on a somewhat cluttered fire escape and probably comes from a rather hard-up family. The ribbed stockings may have been chosen by his mother for their sturdiness.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/us/gar/hos/type/ush-type.html"
http://histclo.com/country/us/gar/hos/type/ush-type.html At some point during the mid-1930s (probably about 1935) a German boy in a Bavarian-style short pants suit was photographed. Note that he wears ribbed dark brown long stockings under his short trousers, presenting a pleasantly masculine, even somewhat rugged, effect..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/suit/jacket/jac-bav.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/suit/jacket/jac-bav.html The advertisements from Montgomery Wards during the mid- 1930s show the variety of textures in which long stockings for both boys and girls were manufactured. The Fall/Winter catalog for 1935 offers ribbed, plain knit, heather mixture, and rayon plated long stockings. Although the rayon plated stockings appealed particularly to girls, they were also worn by boys for especially formal or dressy occasions. Notice the doubly reinforced knees in one of the insert illustrations, a style particularly aimed at boys who were likely to be hard on long stockings in play. Ribbing to the toe is emphasized, indicating that all the stockings on offer here are very form-fitting and won’t bag or fit loosely about the ankle.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/35/hos/w35ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/35/hos/w35ls.html AnotherWards ad the following year (1936-37) shows most of the same features—ribbing to the toe in hosiery of both fine gauge and wider ribs, All these stockings are ribbed, but so finely that they look smooth and dressy. Again we have rayon plated stockings (rayon over cotton) for dress-up occasions.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/36/hos/w36ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/36/hos/w36ls.html A 1937 photo of the distinguished educator and librarian, Vartan Gregorian, shows the boy wearing strangely short, ribbed long stockings as a boy in Iran. Note the exposed and rather heavy hose supporter.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/bio/g/bio-gregor.html"
http://www.histclo.com/bio/g/bio-gregor.html In Germany (1938) we have the image of a boy playing on the floor with his electric train. He wears unusual ribbed long stockings with a pattern that gives a texture that we don’t see very often.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/home/toy/train/tt-cou.html"
http://histclo.com/act/home/toy/train/tt-cou.html Another German photo (1939) shows Hans J at age 4 wearing very long ribbed stockings with his dress-up clothes at the age of 4. He lived near Stuttgart. These stockings seem to be very dark brown. Hans has given us aninteresting account of his childhood clothes at various stages of his boyhood.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/pe/chron/1930/hj/cc/hj-cyb4.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/pe/chron/1930/hj/cc/hj-cyb4.html Ribbed long stockings were apparently very popular in Canada. The Eaton’s catalog for 1939-40 shows dark brown ribbed stockings for Canadian boys and girls. Many Canadian boys preferred short trousers to knickers (especially in more conservative areas such as Quebec), and wore long stockings to protect their knees in the chillier moths. Note the dark colors.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/can/sc-col.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/can/sc-col.html We note a rather unusual style of long stockings in a 1939-40 Sears catalog. These are combination stockings that are plainly textured flesh-color above the knees but that have a three-quarters or knee-sock appearance below the knee. Both Sears and Wards sold such stockings, obviously attempting a compromise between boys and girls who wanted a knee-socks look and mothers who insisted on the protection of full-length stockings in the cooler seasons. As the illustration makes plain, these combination long stockings had to be worn with supporters. They do not seem to have caught on very well because the style quickly disappeared. Important here, of course, was the very smooth texture and light beige of the upper leg of the stocking to imitate the exposed leg. But except for the ornamental cuffs, the lower and darkly colored part of the stockings seems also to be of smooth weave.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/39/s39-lsc.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/39/s39-lsc.html Plain textured stockings (1930s): Smooth-textured long stockings continued to be somewhat more popular than ribbed stockings if we can trust the photographic evidence. This is probably because plain-weave, form-fitting stockings were considered most appropriate for formal occasions, at least in the United States, and more and more, we associate long stockings with formality rather than with winter protection of young knees. A German photo, probably from the later part of the decade, shows a boy and girl sharing a book. The boy wears short trousers with socks (probably knee socks) whereas the girl wears very smooth brown long stockings. Boys also, of course, wore the same kind of long stockings, but knee socks increasingly were an acceptable alternative.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/gen/gbgh-gen.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/gen/gbgh-gen.html A German boy by the name of Eckard wore very smooth beige long stockings with his short pants outfit for his first day of school in the 1930s. Again, note the extremely fine gauge of the knit. Beige and tan shades, as well as darker shades of brown and black, were becoming very common in both Europe and America.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/fd/sug-fd.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/fd/sug-fd.html Tan long stockings were also commonly worn with short trousers by American schoolboys in the 1930s. Note this example in an American elementary school, where we see a child wearing tan stockings with a white shirt and a sailor hat. Since he is sitting down, you can see his supporters showing between the top of the stockings and the hem of the trousers ( Fig. 3). Other exposures on this page show boys wearing black stockings as well as tan. The sailor hats seem to represent a nautical motif that was being stressed on the day the photographer was present..  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/us/is/e9331.html"
http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/us/is/e9331.html During the same period we note an American girl wearing tan or light brown long stockings with a print dress. The same style of smooth-textured stockings were worn also by boys, but they were perhaps more favored by girls.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/gen/lsus-gen.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/gen/lsus-gen.html A young Austrian Jewish boy during the early 1930s poses with his mother in Vienna before the Nazis took over the country. This boy wears beige, almost white, long stockings with quite brief short pants. Note the extreme length necessary to accommodate the increasingly shorter trousers of the 1930s as well as the smooth-textured, dressy weave.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/holc-ost.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/holc-ost.html A German school class (also from the early 1930s) shows the commonness of plain-weave long stockings worn with short trousers for schoolboys. But long stockings, although common, were only one option. Just as many of the boys wear knee socks with their shorts. Although of fine-gauge and not obviously ribbed, some of these stockings seem fairly heavy. German boys wore both cotton and woolen stockings during the 1930s, and sometimes stockings of mixed cotton and woolen yarn.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/wr/gar/over/over30-01.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/wr/gar/over/over30-01.html Another good example of German school clothes appears in a 1930s group of primary-age schoolboys, all of whom seem to be wearing plain-weave stockings. Most seem to be various shades of brown, but note the boy on the right (front row) whose stockings seem to be beige.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/wr/gar/gwrg-hos.html"
http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/wr/gar/gwrg-hos.html A 1930s postcard image (1930s) shows a rather idealized German schoolboy wearing elegantly smooth long stockings (presumably brown) with old-fashioned knee pants (note the length and the ornamental buttons). Although perhaps a bit prettified and sentimentalized for commercial advantage, this costume seems to reflect what many actual German schoolboys really wore to school.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/fd/sug-fdpc.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/fd/sug-fdpc.html A photograph of a Dutch family, taken sometime during the decade, shows an older teenager, perhaps as old 16, wearing a dark suit and tie with short trousers and very smoothly fitting black long stockings. Most Dutch boys of this age seem to have worn either knickers or long trousers, but the family apparently preferred long stockings and shorts for reasons of formality. Interestingly, the season was summer (note the foliage and white dress with ankle socks worn by the girl), so it is clear that the long stockings were not adopted for reasons of warmth.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/neth/fam/ind/dfi30-01.html"
http://histclo.com/country/neth/fam/ind/dfi30-01.html The same principle of propriety seems to apply to an Easter portrait (1930s) of four German children, shown in a garden. All the children, including boys of about ten and twelve, wear smoothly woven but nevertheless woolen-textured long stockings with long-sleeved, collared sweaters. Of course April can be quite chilly in Germany, so these stockings are no doubt partly worn for warmth as well as tradition.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/holiday/nat/ger/hng-east.html"
http://histclo.com/act/holiday/nat/ger/hng-east.html As noted already, first communion ceremonies often necessitated long stockings. A group of Canadian boys in Halifax, Nova Scotia (taken in 1930), shows the various kind of clothing that boys wore for the ceremony. The variety here is notable. Most of the boys wear short trousers suits, a few with knee socks; and at least one boy wears long trousers. But most of the lads wear long stockings of various colors—brown, beige, light tan, and white. One boy with a sailor suit seems to wear black stockings. Northeastern Canada remained very conservative as regards boys’ dress.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1930/cfc30-01h.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1930/cfc30-01h.html The commonness of smooth long stockings in Germany, worn with shorts, is well illustrated by a photo of approximately 1930 in which two boys are playing on the floor with their toy railroad. One boy wears brown stockings while the other one wears beige, both popular colors. Because of the close fit, these are probably cotton stockings of fine- gauge ribbing that nevertheless give the appearance of smooth weave.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/home/toy/train/cou/ttc-ger.html"
http://histclo.com/act/home/toy/train/cou/ttc-ger.html Another German example (also 1930) shows a boy on his father’s knee being read to out of a book. The boy wears the classic sailor suit with dark tan or brown long stockings tautly gartered. Note the smooth appearance—an indication that the weave is of fine-gauge ribbing with a bit of sheen.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/suit/sailor/nat/ger/gar/neck/ssg-neck01.html"
http://histclo.com/style/suit/sailor/nat/ger/gar/neck/ssg-neck01.html A further example (1930), again featuring sailor suits, shows a German brother and sister in coordinated outfits in a garden. Both are wearing long white, smoothly textured and dressy long stockings  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/brosis/gbs-gen.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/brosis/gbs-gen.html We have two illustrations of American boys wearing smooth-weave long stockings during the early 1930s. The first is a lad from Philadelphia, all in white and more formally dressed than his two siblings. He wears plain white stockings, a bit loosely gartered, with his white short pants suit and looks distinctly uncomfortable.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/color/chron/20/1930/als30s.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/color/chron/20/1930/als30s.html The second is a 1930 color photo from an AAA advertisement, showing a boy in winter garb with short trousers and very smooth-fitting gray long stockings sitting on the hood of a car.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/act/trans/car/cou/us/car-us.html"
http://www.histclo.com/act/trans/car/cou/us/car-us.html Note also three Russian boys during the 1930s who wear smoothly textured beige and brown long stockings with short trousers.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/rus/gar/hos/rbg-chron01.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/rus/gar/hos/rbg-chron01.html The style of long stockings with short trousers continued throughout the decade in both Germany and America. We note a 1931 picture of a German schoolboy (about 12 or 13) in a coat sweater, dark gray short pants, and plain black long stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/chron/chron/glsc1930.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/chron/chron/glsc1930.html The next year (1932) we see the typical German First Communion clothing—a dark short pants suit, white shirt (with formal wing collar and bow tie), and smoothly fitting black long stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/ger/fcg32.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/ger/fcg32.html A photo of Israel Baruch in 1932 Bulgaria shows the standard plain-weave light tan long stockings worn with shorts.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/cou/bul/pe/hbpe-baruch.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/cou/bul/pe/hbpe-baruch.html In 1933, we have a class of American school children, probably from about the second grade. Most of the boys wear short pants and white collared shirts with neckties. Some of the boys appear to wear knee socks, but at least one boy wears the more conservative tan long stockings with supporters. Note that the stockings are not long enough to cover the entire leg, and that the garter is plainly visible on one leg (see Fig. 2). The problem of garters showing seems to have been a particularly American experience. The German boys seem to have worn stockings long enough to avoid this embarrassment.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stockps.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stockps.html A well-dressed German boy in 1933 wears his sailor suit with a beret and smoothly textured long black stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/head/beret/gb-chron.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/head/beret/gb-chron.html Two 1934 photographs from the Hermdorf School in Germany show the virtual ubiquity of short pants worn with long stockings. The younger boys wear mostly brown or tan hosiery with their short pants (a few boys have knee socks). And the same style of smooth woven stockings, black or tan, continues into the class with older boys--boys whose ages go up to at least 14.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/herm/herm-hos30x.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/herm/herm-hos30x.html  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/gis-herm.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/gis-herm.html Also in 1934 we note two Estonian Boy Scouts wearing smoothly fitting brown long stockings with their uniforms in place of knee socks. Estonian fashion in boys’ clothing seems to have strongly influenced by German.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/youth/youth/org/sco/country/other/est/scoest.htm"
http://histclo.com/youth/youth/org/sco/country/other/est/scoest.htm An American example from the same year (1934) shows a blind boy at the famous Perkins School for the blind being treated by means of hearing apparatus. Again we have the standard beige long stockings of fine gauge or plain cotton weave worn with hose supporters that are exposed when the boy is sitting down.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/us/is/name/perkins.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/us/is/name/perkins.html We note American Catholic boys from an unidentified school in the mid-1930s wearing white long stockings with white shirts and short pants for their First Communion ceremony. The white long stockings were of course traditional in Catholic schools for reasons of formality. Note that the boys wear black shoes rather than white ones, The stockings are naturally of the most formal, fine-gauge cotton, perhaps mixed with rayon yarns..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/us/chron/iw/ic/fc-ucs30x01.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/us/chron/iw/ic/fc-ucs30x01.html A boy or about 6 or 7 from Pittsburgh was photographed in 1935-36 wearing a dressy outfit of shirt and tie, sleeveless sweater, short pants, and long woolen stockings of beige or light tan. These stockings seem to be of fairly heavy texture (perhaps a mixture of wool and cotton) but are not obviously ribbed. Note the hint of hose supporter showing on the upper thigh.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/us/pe/1930/cous-pe3001c.html"
http://histclo.com/country/us/pe/1930/cous-pe3001c.html Czech boys dressed for First Communion in ways very similar to German boys. In 1935 Jaroslav Valdman is seen wearing a neatly tailored double breasted suit with open collar and long brown stockings. He seems to be about ten or eleven. Most German boys wore black stockings for religious ceremonies, but smoothly textured brown was probably acceptable in some situations.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/other/czech/act/ca-rel.html"
http://histclo.com/country/other/czech/act/ca-rel.html We see a group of Lithuanian Jewish children in 1935 all wearing the standard plain-weave stockings of the period. The boy in the sailor suit wears black stockings while another boy wears light brown or tan stockings. Note the white stockings worn by the girl.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/holc-lit.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/holc-lit.html A fashionable Czech portrait of the two Muller children (1935) shows both the boy and the girl wearing very smoothly textured, plain-weave long stockings with quite short clothes. The boy wears beige stockings whereas the girl seems to be wearing white.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/other/czech/fam/czf-muller30.html"
http://histclo.com/country/other/czech/fam/czf-muller30.html In the second half of the decade the trend for wearing short pants with long stockings continued, although in the United States the fashion tended to be reserved for younger boys. In Europe the fashion extended also to older boys. In 1936 we see the two Holland brothers who are wearing plain beige stockings with their short pants although we can only see the legs of the younger child. Again notice the plain weave of the stockings and the fasteners of the supporters visible in the sitting position. This was a common middle-class style in Boston.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/bio/op/h/bop-holldr.html"
http://histclo.com/bio/op/h/bop-holldr.html The smoothness of texture that was typical shows up plainly in a 1936-37 Sears ad for long stockings. These stockings are fairly light-weight and fine-textured for dressy wear even though they are being promoted in a Fall and Winter catalog. One of the styles features “rayon plating,” a mixture of yarns designed to give a certain sheen to long stockings and that mothers liked for dress-up occasions. Girls of course liked them also because they were closer to the hosiery their mothers wore, but rayon plated hosiery was not restricted to girls. One of the interesting details of this ad is that the boy model is shown wearing knickers rather than short pants. Long stockings were often worn with knickers also when mothers wanted a dressier look than could be had with patterned knee socks. In addition knee socks tended to fall down, whereas long stockings, worn with supporters, stayed neatly in place.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/36/s36hos.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/36/s36hos.html A 1937 photo of a Blankenburg Gymnasium class (a German secondary school) shows boys wearing their Hitler Youth uniforms. Most of the boys wear knee socks, which was the standard custom, but one boy wears brown long stockings with his uniform—a holdover, apparently, from his ordinary street dress. The plain texture seems ordinary..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/tr/lev/sec/ned-lsec01.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/tr/lev/sec/ned-lsec01.html A large family from Illinois by the name of Saunders (the photo was taken in 1937) shows a good cross section of middle-class dress in the late 1930s. Note the younger boy with short trousers and fine-gauge beige long stockings (again with the hose supporters visible in the sitting position).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/us/fam/1930/usf-1937s.html"
http://histclo.com/country/us/fam/1930/usf-1937s.html In continental Europe long stockings worn with shorts were very common in the later 1930s. We even see them in Italy, although knee socks were much more common. One reason for the smooth-weave long stockings in this school photo taken in Monferrato (northern Italy) in 1938 is the Fascist Balilla youth-group uniforms that featured long stockings. A few of the boy wear knee socks, but brown, tan, or even black long stockings (smooth-textured) were apparently part of the uniform, and most mothers obliged.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/it/chron/20/1930/is-ozz38.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/it/chron/20/1930/is-ozz38.html A different uniform featuring dressy long stockings was that worn for funerals by a well-known Jewish orphanage in Holland. We see one such procession in 1938. Under the long overcoats we can’t see the trousers, but they were undoubtedly knee pans or shorts.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/neth/min/dm-jew.html"
http://histclo.com/country/neth/min/dm-jew.html In the Jewish ghetto of Berlin (1938) we see a boy being fitted for shoes. Note the plain brown and very long stockings which were standard boys’ wear of the period. A slightly older boy in the same shop wears knee socks. Both styles were equally common for boys of different ages.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/ger/hg-shop.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/ger/hg-shop.html German middle-class families often dressed their sons in short trousers with long, plain-weave brown long stockings. This photo from the late 1930s shows a boy in one of the popular sailor suits with such stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/fam/cg-fam3001.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/fam/cg-fam3001.html The Heim family, another German family, outfitted all three of their sons in identical H-bar shorts in 1939. The same style of plain-weave brown long stockings provides the appropriately formal accompaniment.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/fam/cg-fam01mc.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/fam/cg-fam01mc.html Almost all American dry goods stores in the late 1930s carried the long beige cotton stockings that had become so popular. These vintage Buster Brown cotton stockings, made in sizes large enough to fit boys and girls of 12 or 13 years, illustrate the dressy, fine-gauge texture that many mothers wanted. Note the additional length made to avoid the problem of garters showing beneath the briefer short pants and skirts then in vogue. The slightly pinkish tone of these stockings seems designed to approximate flesh color..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/react/vin/gar/hos/vgh-bbls01.html"
http://histclo.com/react/vin/gar/hos/vgh-bbls01.html But darker stockings were also being worn by American children. This color photo of a farm girl in finely textured brown long stockings gives a good idea of one of the colors available. Manufacturers had finally caught on to the desirability of knitting children’s stockings in longer lengths. Here, for instance, the necessary hose supporters do not show.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/color/chron/20/1930/als30s-brown.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/us/color/chron/20/1930/als30s-brown.html By 1939-40 the standard cotton for boys’ and girls’ long stockings had become scarce in Germany owing to the war. German manufacturers attempted to solve the problem by manufacturing stockings with various kinds of synthetic yarns. These “Netco” brand stockings illustrate not only the newer fabric but also the smooth texture and available colors. The dark brown and beige colors were already common, but note the new olive or greenish shade that may have had something to do with the military uniforms then so visible.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/ger/chron/930/39/ls39-hetko.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/ger/chron/930/39/ls39-hetko.html The extreme length of European long stockings, covering the entire thigh almost like tights, shows up in this photograph of a young Swiss boy in long white stockings, Again the preferred texture is very smooth unlike many of the white knee socks that boys wore with native costumes, youth uniforms, and hiking shorts. Note the girl’s knee socks, which seem to be ribbed.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/swi/pe/tom/tom-fam.html"
http://histclo.com/country/swi/pe/tom/tom-fam.html A harrowing photograph of a Jewish girl being subjected to Third Reich identification procedures in 1938-39 has the incidental value of illustrating the commonly worn smoothly textured cotton long stockings commonly worn by both boys and girls in Germany. Notice the length of the girl’s stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/ger/hg-id.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/hol/ger/hg-id.html Two Sears ads for American garter waists in 1939 show boys wearing fine-gauge tan cotton stockings  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/under/gar/sup/ug-gw.html"
http://histclo.com/style/under/gar/sup/ug-gw.html and also black stockings  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/39/s39-gw.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/930/39/s39-gw.html A color placard for the widely sold Hickory garter waists also shows very smoothly textured long stockings, tan or beige, about 1937-38.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/under/gar/ug-cats01.html"
http://histclo.com/style/under/gar/ug-cats01.html Teddy Kennedy at about age 7 or 8 is seen wearing a dark short pants suit with black long stockings for a Papal audience with his family in Rome in 1939. Vatican protocols of the period required children’s knees to be covered, black or white long stockings with short trousers being standard. Fine-gauge stockings were of course appropriate.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/pres/ind20/jfk/jfk-ww2.html"
http://histclo.com/pres/ind20/jfk/jfk-ww2.html

The 1940s

Long stockings didn’t outlast the decade in the United States and stopped being advertised, at least for boys, by the middle 1940s. But they continued to be popular in Canada, especially in Quebec and the maritimes, and in central Europe, especially Germany. There is some evidence also, judging from the prominence of the advertising in Sears and Wards catalogs, that there was a brief resurgence of popularity of long stockings worn with short trousers in the U.S. in the period from about 1939 to 1945 although we lack confirmatory evidence from photographs. By now almost all long stockings were ribbed to ensure stretchiness and close fit, although often the ribbing was of such a fine gauge that the general effect was smooth texture Smooth-textured stockings still were thought to be more dressy and were often preferred by girls although certainly not restricted to girls. In this account stockings that are described as smooth, plain, or of fine gauge are actually finely ribbed in such a way as to look non-ribbed. The rugged, rather masculine look of ribbed cotton stockings is well illustrated by an Eaton’s ad in 1940-41 (see Figs. 1 and 2) which shows a Canadian boy playing football in short pants and black ribbed long stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/40/e40ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/40/e40ls.html Another Eaton’s ad for Spring and Summer, 1941 shows a boy and girl both wearing fine- gauge long stockings—dark brown or black. But they are described as “ribbed cotton and wool hose.” Cotton and wool mixtures were popular in Canada, even in the Spring, because of the chilly weather in some parts of the country. These stockings look like standard wear for school children.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/e41ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/e41ls.html Another page in the same 1941 Eaton’s catalog (Spring and Summer) shows long stockings with knee socks as an alternative. The boy and girl wearing long stockings are again wearing “ribbed” hose, but the texture is clearly meant to look very plain. Note that the text specifies that dressy “rayon plated” stockings are available. Both heavy-weight and lighter-weight stockings were sold depending on climate and the degree of formality desired. A range of colors were offered including white and black as well as various shades of tan and brown.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/hos/e41h.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/hos/e41h.html A slightly later Eaton’s catlogue (1941-42, Fall and Winter) shows a schoolboy and schoolgirl wearing the fashionable finely ribbed, rayon plated, smooth-appearing long stockings for school wear. Notice the briefly cut shorts on the boy and the very light beige of these necessarily extra-long stockings. Wool, cashmere, cotton, and rayon plated stockings were all advertised. Although finely ribbed, these stockings have plain knit feet for greater comfort and better shoe fit.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/hos/e41ls2.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/41/hos/e41ls2.html Canadian schoolboy dress in Catholic Quebec can be observed in a 1942 photograph of a boy from a private Catholic school. Note the obviously ribbed beige long stockings worn with short trousers, apparently mandated by the school. Some of our Canadian readers have pointed out that boys always wore ribbed stockings so as to be distinguished from girls, who wore smooth-weave long stockings. This gender distinction, however, appears to have been a strictly local custom. The Eaton’s catalogs show no such indication of gender preference between ribbed and non-ribbed stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/can/pe/cpe1940-01s.html"
http://histclo.com/country/can/pe/cpe1940-01s.html A1943 Sears Spring and Summer catalogue shows both ribbed and fine-gauge stockings shown as indifferent alternatives for boys and girls in the USA. Regardless of the ribbing, however, we note that these stockings are fairly light-weight and dressy, being worn by a boy with a short-sleeved tee-shirt in apparently mild weather. These stockings were suitable for both play and school. Notice the extremely extended length, necessary for the brief short trousers so that supporters wouldn’t show.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/43/s43sls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/43/s43sls.html A Wards 1943-44 Fall and Winter catalog gives us an idea of the variety of styles and textures of long stockings then being promoted. The proliferation of choices here is a good indication that full length stockings were enjoying at least a brief phase of national popularity. Here we have everything from very smooth textured hosiery to wide and narrow ribbed, to a kind of waffle knit, to rayon plated, to heather mixtures, even including button-on stockings (which did away with the necessity of garter waists and hose supporters), covering the entire upper leg like tights. All these stockings seem to be targeted equally for boys and girls, and the sizes go up to 9 ½ and 10—large enough for children of 12 or 13.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/43/hos/w43ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/43/hos/w43ls.html Long stockings were very common for boys of all ages up to about 16 in Germany. Notice a photo of two German boys with their mother wearing light-weight summery knitted sports shirts with short trousers and obviously ribbed long stockings, apparently of dark brown. The ribbing not only looks boyish but insures stretchiness and close fit. Somewhat unusually for Germany you can see the garter clasp on the upper leg of the boy on the right. This photo seems to have been taken in the mid-1940s.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/weave/sw-cou.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/weave/sw-cou.html A charming photo (taken in1947 Czechoslovakia) shows Karel Chech wearing obviously ribbed beige stockings with his short pants and a diamond patterned sweater. This photo is a good example of how short boys’ trousers were being worn in the 1940s and how correspondingly long the stockings had to be.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/bio/op/c/ch/bop-chechk.html"
http://histclo.com/bio/op/c/ch/bop-chechk.html A good color photo from the late 1940s shows a pair of Vintage Canadian long stockings of the type commonly worn in Quebec and other wintry provinces. Notice the fine ribbing that would give the appearance of smoothness from any distance—also the light brown color, a not unusual shade for schoolboys and girls. The texture is largely a result of the cotton and wool blend of yarns.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/can/gar/hose/cgh-vin.html"
http://histclo.com/country/can/gar/hose/cgh-vin.html A very late Eaton’s catalog (1949) again shows very obviously ribbed full-length stockings. It is interesting here that only girl models are shown, an indication, probably, that long stockings for boys were on the wane. But we know that a few boys still wore them.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/49/e49ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/49/e49ls.html Plain weave, fine textured stockings in the 1940s: In rural Norway we see boys still wearing plainly textured long stockings during the decade. This coastal lad wears gray stockings, short pants, and with rubber boots in 1940, just before the Nazi invasion.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/other/nor/nor-gar.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/other/nor/nor-gar.html Smoothly textured stockings dominate the pages of the Sears catalogs in the early 1940s in the USA. The stockings shown tend to be cotton beige or light tan and extra-long to accommodate the short trousers then in style. Note a boy riding a wagon in the, 1940-41 Fall and Winter catalogue. The smooth fit is obvious and no supporters are allowed to show despite the shortness of the trousers.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/40/sls40-01.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/40/sls40-01.html A 1941 Sears advertisement again shows the fine-gauge texture of the long stockings on offer. Note especially Fig.3 showing a schoolboy dressed in a rather upper-class short pants suit with plain tan stockings and a rather British-looking peaked cap. British boys might have worn this kind of suit but almost inevitably with knee socks. Wearing long stockings with this kind of suit was a strictly American (or Canadian) style. Some mothers insisted on the long stockings as dressier than bare knees and more protective in chilly weather.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stock-us20iw.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stock-us20iw.html An Eaton’s 1942 Spring and Summer catalogue shows a Canadian boy (probably in March) flying his kite. Note the rather heavy-weight long stockings, probably of wool and cotton mixture, which give a fairly smooth appearance even though not obviously ribbed. Eaton’s sold various weights—light, medium, and heavy—and also made “rayon plated” stockings for dress-up wear available. The stockings in the illustration have an obvious outdoorsy appearance while at the same time fitting neatly.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/42/e42ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/can/chron/1940/42/e42ls.html We do not need to rely on advertising to confirm the wearing of long stockings in Canada in the 1940s. Note this 1942 photograph of a Canadian boy in plain-weave beige long stockings, and short trousers held up by suspenders. He is shown with a group of Royal Canadian Navy officers, one of whom has apparently given the lad a naval military hat to wear. Canada, of course, was involved in World War II at the time.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/cou/can/w2c-atl.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/cou/can/w2c-atl.html Similar beige stockings are worn by a boy from a French Canadian family on an outing, also in 1942. Long stockings would have been welcome on a chilly day by the water, but propriety as well as warmth was probably a consideration.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/can/gar/head/style/beret/cb42.html"
http://histclo.com/country/can/gar/head/style/beret/cb42.html In 1943 we see a group of Montreal children from a Catholic orphanage dressed mainly in smooth tan long stockings. Notice that no distinction is made in the stockings of the boys and girls. The children, of kindergarten age, are dressed of course in matching smock-like, one-piece outfits. Again the long stockings seem to be an ordinary convention of Catholic propriety.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/insti/orp/can/io/ico-umo.html"
http://histclo.com/insti/orp/can/io/ico-umo.html A Sears 1943 Spring and Summer catalogue shows a boy seated on a low stool wearing what look like rayon-plated or at least very smooth-textured hose. Notice the close fit and the extended length. This photograph seems to have been used more than once in the Sears advertisements of the early 1940s (Fig. 1).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stock-us20iw.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/stock-us20iw.html German boys during the 1940s wore long stockings with short pants as a matter of course. Note this photo of Hans-J at the age of 8, almost 9, wearing dark brown long stockings along with his younger cousin who is similarly dressed. The stockings are obviously of smooth weave.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/pe/chron/1930/hj/gar/hj-ghos.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/pe/chron/1930/hj/gar/hj-ghos.html We also see a Swedish boy in tan long stockings of smooth weave (the picture was taken in 1945). This boy wears smoothly textured tan or light brown stockings with his hose supporters exposed, somewhat unusually for Europe where the stockings were generally long enough to prevent garters from showing. He appears to be totally unembarrassed, however.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/len/var/lsv-long.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/len/var/lsv-long.html Another such photo (taken in Germany in 1943) shows a young boy, again with smooth weave long stockings (beige) and garters exposed, on a farm with a flock of ducks.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/under/glc40-01.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/under/glc40-01.html The fashionable dressiness of boys’ long stockings, insisted upon by some protective and perhaps class-conscious American mothers, appears to good advantage in a Sears ad for Pilgrim brand stockings in a 1945 Sears Fall and Winter catalogue. Instead of a suit, this boy wears a neatly fitting sweater with an Eton collar. Notice how briefly cut the short trousers are and how smoothly leg-clinging are the fine-textured tan stockings. The extra length of the stockings guarantees that no embarrassing exposure of hose supporters occurs.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/45/s45ls.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/us/chron/940/45/s45ls.html If long stockings almost disappeared in America in the latter half of the 1940s, they continued prominently in Europe. During the Cold War in1946 we notice an East German boy wearing the traditional short pants with halter (suspender) top and very dark long stockings (black or dark brown)  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/cold/war-cold1.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/cold/war-cold1.html In 1946-47 (probably) we see a German farm boy in long beige stockings of plain weave, clearly held up by a Leibchen. Long stockings seem to have been more popular in rural Germany than in the larger cities.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/chron/ghc20.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/chron/ghc20.html Although long stockings for boys were rare in the United States after 1945, we note two American-Slovak boys wearing smoothly textured full length hosiery with short trousers about 1947-48. The conservatism of style here is probably due in large measure to the European origins of the family who perhaps had recently immigrated. For a closer look at the stockings of the older and younger boy, click on image (Fig.1 detail). A third boy wears ankle socks with his shorts.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/us/imm/cou/imm-slovak01.html"
http://histclo.com/country/us/imm/cou/imm-slovak01.html During the American occupation of one of the four zones of Germany in 1948, we observe a German boy wearing a beret and plainly textured long stockings cleaning off the car of an American officer. He looks to be about 12 or 13.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/head/gbgh-beret.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/head/gbgh-beret.html During the same year (1948) we see a class of First Communion boys (St. Henri school or church in Montreal) wearing a variety of outfits. Most of the boys wear short pant suits with long stockings, although one boy wears long trousers. The stockings all seem to be of formal, fine-gauge texture, but of varying colors—white, tan, brown, and black. Two of the boys wear knee socks, but they are clearly in the minority.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1940/cfc40-01.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1940/cfc40-01.html The Heinrich Heine School in Germany shows a class of boys (about 12 to 14) wearing a fairly wide selection of clothing in 1948. Plainly textured long stockings with short shorts (see the detail, Fig. 1) figure fairly prominently. Brown stockings in darker and lighter shades seem to be the most common. But note that some of the boys wear knee socks while others wear long trousers. There does not appear to be any age-grading here. Long stockings worn with short trousers were not only a matter of propriety for some mothers but also an economy measure, since long trousers were more expensive, taking more material to make or manufacture.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/gis-heine.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/is/alpha/h/gis-heine.html In 1948 Quebec we also see a French Canadian boy very formally dressed for his First Communion. He wears the traditional black short pants suit with smoothly textured black full-length stockings. Note the white bow tie, a child’s version of what an adult male might wear to a formal wedding or ball.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1940/cfc48-02.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/can/chron/20/1940/cfc48-02.html During the 1948-49 Air Lift in Berlin, we note a German boy making friends with an American G.I. and wearing plainly textured brown long stockings with fairly short suspender shorts. The other boy of about the same age (9 or 10) wears knee socks. Many German mothers considered long stockings for their boys to be more practical and more protective.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/essay/war/cold/wc-bal.html"
http://histclo.com/essay/war/cold/wc-bal.html A 1949 advertisement for Dutch boys’ clothes shows a boy wearing neatly creased shorts with a patterned sweater and long, non-ribbed beige stockings. The texture, although neat, seems to indicate at least part-wool.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/neth/gar/con-hos.html"
http://histclo.com/country/neth/gar/con-hos.html In the very late 1940s (perhaps as late as 1949) we see a group of Dutch children, three of whom wear brown, plainly woven long stockings. Although the oldest boy wears knee socks, the two younger lads are shown with sailor suits and smooth, but fairly heavy, long stockings. One interesting feature of the picture is the round garters (in lieu of hose supporters) that the boys wear to keep the stockings up. Round garters were much less common than supporters in Germany, but some boys seem to have preferred them because of the greater ease of unfastening them.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/neth/fam/ind/dfi40-02u.html"
http://histclo.com/country/neth/fam/ind/dfi40-02u.html

The 1950s

We see fewer obviously ribbed long stockings during the 1950s although they clearly existed. A German boy, photographed in an elegant white short pants suit for First Communion in 1950, appears to be wearing fancily ribbed long stockings with a striped pattern. The stockings come up so high and fit so snugly that they look very much like tights. But tights weren’t introduced until about 1957, so these could be very well be fancy stockings. Or perhaps our dating is off.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/ger/fcg-chron.html"
http://histclo.com/act/rel/event/comf/cou/ger/fcg-chron.htmlAnother German boy from the Black Forrest wears heavily ribbed woolen long stockings with suspender shorts and a sweater in 1953 for rugged outdoor activity. His companion wears long trousers with clip-on suspenders.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-mat.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-mat.html In 1956 we note a Russian schoolboy of 9 or 10 wearing ribbed brown cotton stockings with short trousers—obviously dressed for school.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/rus/chron/rls950.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/rus/chron/rls950.html Plain-weave or narrow-gauge long stockings seem to have been more common. A photo of a French Canadian boy, dressed in a black short pants suit with beret and very smooth long black stockings (Fig. 2), wears almost exactly the same kind of formal clothing for his First Communion that was standard as early as the 1920s (see above).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/can/co-can.html"
http://histclo.com/country/can/co-can.html Another boy from the same province (in Quebec City, 1950) is shown wearing smoothly textured brown long stockings with a button-on short pants outfit while he is practicing the piano.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/can/act/can-act.html"
http://histclo.com/country/can/act/can-act.html In 1951 East Germany, where styles of boys’ clothing remained quite conservative, we note a schoolboy wearing long brown stockings with short trousers and the traditional red neckerchief of the Communist Young Pioneers. But most of the other boys seem to wear knickers or long trousers.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/cw/gsuecwe.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/ger/era/cw/gsuecwe.html A 1952 (or at least early 1950s) photograph of three German brothers with their mother shows all three boys, ranging in age from about 12 to 6, wearing suspender shorts with fine-gauge long stockings. There is a hint of ribbing on the stockings of the oldest boy, who wears his stockings under lederhosen. The German Hosiery Museum offers this picture as typical of the long stockings, covering the entire thigh, that German boys wore during the 1950s  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/pants/sus/tro-susp01.html"
http://histclo.com/style/pants/sus/tro-susp01.html Another 1952 photo shows a class of Czech school children, many of whom wear smoothly textured long stockings of various colors, white, tan, brown, etc. The basic color for the boys seems to be tan or light brown although one boy wears dressy white stockings. Notice the extreme length of the stockings and the brevity of the shorts in many cases (Fig. 1, detail).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/other/cz/csu-chron.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/other/cz/csu-chron.html A German boy, apparently resting from a hike, wears lederhosen with his long tan cotton stockings (1953), Notice the smooth texture and the white button (Waschenknopf) by which his garter attaches to the top.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-sup.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-sup.html Styles of boys’ clothes in Austria were of course similar to German styles in 1953. Notice the schoolboy sitting on the wall in this primary class (also 1953). He wears very brief short trousers with his plain tan long stockings—also a white shirt and tie. The stockings are probably finely ribbed but look to be smooth in texture. They are almost certainly cotton.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/casual/leder/cou/ledco-ost.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/casual/leder/cou/ledco-ost.html A 1954 color photo of a Moscow boy in tan stockings and bib shorts (Fig. 2) shows the standard dress for younger boys in the Russian city during the decade. The stockings are obviously of smooth texture.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/rus/co-ruschsov.html"
http://histclo.com/country/rus/co-ruschsov.html Fine-gauge long stockings continued to be widely worn in Germany in the 1950s. We have a valuable photo of a German boy in 1954 wearing corduroy shorts with very smooth cotton long stockings, perhaps with a bit of rayon in them. From the way the boy is disarranging his trousers we get to see the standard length of the stockings although unfortunately not the garters that hold them in place. The photo also shows alternative kinds of boys’ dress. Notice that it is chilly enough for a sweater and a stocking cap although not for an outer coat or jacket.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/len/cou/lslc-ger.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/stock/len/cou/lslc-ger.html We have the 1955 photo of children shopping with their mother for shoes in an East Berlin shop that reveals respectable German children’s clothes of the mid-decade under the Communists. The boy, of about 6 or 7, wears a rather dressy overcoat with beret, under which we can see extremely brief short trousers with fine-gauge tan long stockings held up by supporters.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/foot/gbgf-chron.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/foot/gbgf-chron.html Also in 1955, three German boys from a village near Hamelin wear brown and beige long stockings with what appear to be corduroy shorts. The stockings are very tautly held up (undoubtedly by garters fastened to a Leibchen) and seem to be of finely-ribbed knit so as to give a smooth appearance. The color photograph was taken on a warm winter day when only sweaters and stockings were necessary to keep warm.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-color.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-color.html An additional German photo of 1955 is interesting for its gender implications. Here both the boy and girl wear identical tan long stockings for play even though the outside temperature is obviously quite mild. Notice the length of the boy’s hosiery (which we can observe from his squatting position beside a pond) and the smooth texture.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-gen.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-gen.html We note a young Russian soccer fan of about 9 or 10 wearing brown long stockings with suspender shorts in 1956. These stockings are probably finely ribbed but heavy-weight cotton, but of a weave to give the appearance of smoothness. The texture seems to be quite similar to the socks of the adult player who is putting on his soccer boots. We can’t be certain of the hosiery worn by the boy’s friend. Shorts with long stockings seem a likely possibility here as well.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/rus/act/ra-sport.html"
http://histclo.com/country/rus/act/ra-sport.html A German teenager riding his bike (1957) wears black long stockings and additional ankle socks with lederhosen. Notice the supporters showing under the very brief shorts, probably attached to the kind of garter belt that older boys preferred to the more juvenile Leibchen. These stockings are again of smooth texture and worn, one supposes, because it was a nippy day..  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-age.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-age.html Finally we have the image of a Soviet kindergarten class in which the majority of boys seem to be wearing cross-bar suspender shorts with smoothly textured long stockings, tan or white. A few of the boys wear long pants and one girl has ankle socks rather than long stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/rus/lev/kind/rk-uni.html"
http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/rus/lev/kind/rk-uni.html

The 1960s

The 1960s was the last decade in Europe and Japan when boys wore long stockings with any regularity. The style was dying out even in Germany, which tended to be conservative about insisting that boys wear short trousers even in winter. And even in Germany the custom of wearing long stockings tended to persist mainly in rural areas or remote villages. East Germany seems to have more conservative in this regard. We still see long stockings worn in Russia (we have several examples from Moscow). Tights, however, had been introduced in the late 1950s, and these sometimes replaced long stockings in circumstances where long stockings had been standard before. Two Soviet boys wear plain-weave beige stockings, very smooth in texture, during the early 1960s. Notice also the overcoats and berets.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/rus/gar/coat/rg-coat.html"
http://histclo.com/country/rus/gar/coat/rg-coat.html An East German boy, also in the 1960s, wore highly textured hosiery of a ribbed nature to keep warm. (see Fig. 2). In this photograph it isn’t quite clear whether the stockings are unusually short and don’t reach high enough to cover the gap between his short pants and the stocking tops, or whether these stockings have unusual plain beige tops. If the stockings are as short as they look, they seem to be worn without supporters.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/stock-nat.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/stock-nat.html We see a German boy of about 12 or 13, probably from a prosperous rural family, re-attaching his hose supporter to plain-textured beige long stockings in 1962. Notice that he is quite formally dressed in a good-quality short pants suit. Shorts with long stockings were useful to cyclists because long trousers often got caught in the bicycle chain, and cycling exposes the legs to wind. This boy may have been on his way to school or church.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/gbgh-ls.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/gbgh-ls.html Long woolen ribbed stockings (perhaps home-knitted) can be seen in another German photo of 1962. This boy, about ten or eleven, lives in a chilly mountain village. Notice the rubber Wellington-style boots, the hole worn in the knee, and the extreme length of the stockings, held up clearly by garters attached to a Leibchen.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-matw.html"
http://histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/ghstock-matw.html The neatness, formality, and class associations of long stockings recommended them to mothers and school officials in the more elite schools of the Soviet Union in 1962. This gifted boy, who is being tested for musical aptitude, wears smooth-textured tan long stockings with a Leibchen as part of his school uniform in Moscow. Girls in the school wore the same tan stockings..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/rus/act/mus/ram-train.html"
http://histclo.com/country/rus/act/mus/ram-train.html Some Japanese boys also wore long stockings with short pants in 1962. This boy (perhaps 9 or 10) plays his small guitar during a family musical session (perhaps in Tokyo), wearing very smooth beige stockings, gartered by round thigh elastics rather than the more traditional hose supporters. For some reason, Japanese mothers seem to have preferred round garters to Western-style supporters for holding up long stockings.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/country/jap/fam/jap-fam.html"
http://histclo.com/country/jap/fam/jap-fam.html At some point during the 1960s we see an athletic and energetic German boy of ten or eleven showing off his climbing prowess by posing in a tree. He is dressed in a sweater, short trousers, and the commonly seen plain-textured tan cotton long stockings. Notice the clips on his supporters, visible because the shorts are a little too short to cover the tops of the stockings. This boy doesn’t seem to be in the least embarrassed about the garters showing. This boy may come from the Eastern sector of the country.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/chron/chron/glsc1960.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/ger/gar/hos/type/stock/chron/chron/glsc1960.html Notice also this Russian kindergarten boy (photographed in 1964) wearing very short trousers with heavily ribbed woolen long stockings. Again, we can see the clasp of his elastic hose supporter.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/country/rus/gar/hos/rbg-hos.html"
http://www.histclo.com/country/rus/gar/hos/rbg-hos.html In 1965 we have another photograph of Russian kindergarteners. The children all wear brown long stockings with short trousers or short dresses, again with supporters attached in front. Notice that one boy, the tallest in the group, wears stockings that seem to be doubly reinforced from just below the knees to the top, probably because growing boys are notoriously hard on the knees of their stockings. These stockings may be finely ribbed, but from a distance they seem to be of plain weave.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/schun/country/rus/rsu-lev.html"
http://histclo.com/schun/country/rus/rsu-lev.html A final Russian photograph, taken in Moscow in 1967, shows children on a spring or summer day wearing various kinds of dress for play. Although knee socks and long trousers were common in the later 1960s, we note one boy still wearing the rather old-fashioned tan long stockings with his shorts. They are of the standard fine-textured weave.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/rus/sr-chron.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/stock/nat/rus/sr-chron.html TIGHTS Tights became available as a substitute for long stockings in the late 1950s but didn’t become very common in places like Germany and Russia until the 1960s. Even then, long stockings were sometimes preferred as more economical. Tights were most commonly manufactured in smooth textures (often with partly nylon yarn), but more sporty-looking ribbed tights, sometimes in bright colors, were available as well. 1950 Probably in the late 1950s, we observe a German boy on his sister’s knee wearing short trousers and tights (most likely dark brown). Notice the smooth, non-ribbed texture (Fig. 1). A few years earlier, this boy would undoubtedly have worn brown long stockings instead of tights.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-ger.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-ger.html 1960 As early as the 1960s both plain and ribbed tights were being worn with short pants suits in Japan in lieu of long stockings. We see boys dressed up in suits with shirts and ties wearing grey ribbed tights as well as more smoothly textured white tights. Both styles were obviously considered very dressy. See Fig. 3  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/sockt.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/sockt.html Tights caught on quickly in Germany. In 1960 we note a German ad for tights in various colors and patterns. See Fig. 2. A German ad with greater variety of colors and textures (also probably from the 1960s) appears on the same page (see Fig. 1). The Germans made tights in very colorful designs for wear with knickers and lederhosen as well as with conventional short pants.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-pat.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-pat.html In East Germany tights with short pants were normal school wear. Color illustrations in a school book (1963) show boys wearing brown and grey (presumably cotton, smoothly textured) tights in classroom or after-school activities (Figs. 1 and 2).  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/gdr/tgd-con.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/gdr/tgd-con.html By long-standing tradition, First Communion formality often required short pants worn with long stockings. We see a Swiss boy, wearing ribbed dark tights, for this Catholic service in 1963 (Fig.1). The ribbing however is fine-gauge and gives a dressy appearance.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html We also note a Swiss boy wearing dark tights with a short pants suit for a wedding in 1965 (Fig. 2). The texture is appropriately smooth.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html In 1969, we see a German ad in which a boy wears ribbed green tights (Fig. 2), presumably for informal or sports wear.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-nat.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-nat.html

The 1970s

Tights continued to be popular in Germany and Russia during the 1970s both for warmth and for dressiness. We note a Russian boy in smooth tan tights (the picture appears to have been taken during the 1970s) relaxing at home with his sister. He might have worn this outfit to school also with perhaps a jacket or sweater. Notice the finely textured smoothness of these tights.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1970.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1970.html About 1970 we note a German ad for boys’ tights, textured and ribbed, designed with a fly-opening for greater male convenience. Both ribbed and non-ribbed models are available. Note that these tights are shown with German-style breeches or unbloused, close-fitting knickers. But they were probably also worn with short pants.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-boysty.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-boysty.html In Finland-cotton tights for both boys and girls were advertised, often in bright colors such as orange. They were sometimes ribbed. A reader recalls that he inherited a pair of “ribbed brownish-yellow cotton tights” in 1976 and was not particularly happy with them. They were probably supposed to be worn with short trousers for warmth.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-fin.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-fin.html We note a Moscow boy in 1974, accompanying his mother in a rather dressy short pants suit, worn with smoothly fitting brown tights. Given Russian weather, he probably appreciated the cosiness of tights, which obviously, for him, had replaced long stockings and obviated the bother of wearing hose supporters.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-chron.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-chron.html The same year (1974) we note two Russian boys, much less formally dressed, who wear smooth-textured cotton tights simply for comfort on a summer day. It couldn’t have been too chilly because they wear short sleeves and have open-necked shirts. Tights in this case seem to be a convenient substitute for bulkier long trousers. The colors seem to be beige or light tan, the same colors that dominated the long-stocking market.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-sea.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-sea.html A 1974 photograph from Slovakia illustrates the use of ribbed tights. Notice that the girl’s tights seem to have more of a pattern and are more widely ribbed than her brother’s narrow-gauge ribbed tights.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-slovak.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-slovak.html Upper-class, fashion-conscious American mothers seem to have wanted younger boys to dress up on formal occasions in elegant white tights worn with black velvet shortalls (see Fig. 3). It is doubtful that this style was very widespread, and American boys would have probably resisted. Notice, however, the very dressy, smooth texture of such tights and the strap shoes.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/casual/shorta.html"
http://histclo.com/style/casual/shorta.html In Japan during the 1970s tights worn with short trousers were considered appropriate for music recitals (see Fig. 3). Mothers also sometimes dressed their sons in shorts and white tights for school (Fig.2). In both cases, formality would have been an issue, but Japan can be chilly in winter so that tights (like long stockings at an earlier period) were also mandated by mothers as a means of protecting their son’s knees.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-jap.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-jap.html 1980 We see quite a few examples of tights being worn by boys during the 1980s. Both ribbed and non-ribbed styles are evident. A German boy wore ribbed tan tights for soccer as an alternative to bare knees. He wears his white knee socks over the tights. His teammates seem content to go with knees exposed..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-gersp.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-gersp.html White tights for extremely formal, dress-up occasions continued to be shown in American fashion magazines as late as the 1980s. One boy on an apparently patriotic occasion is shown with a black shortall, white tights, and red shoes (Fig. 2). Again this style seems to be more a designer’s conception of how boys should dress than a true indication of how they actually did dress. A few mothers may have been able to persuade boys to dress like this, but the style could hardly have been popular with male children.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-us.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-us.html In 1980 we see a French boy (from Provence) wearing smoothly textured brown tights under short trousers with somewhat trendy suspenders..  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-fra.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-fra.html We note a Norwegian advertisement of a boy in white tights, appropriate to a country where skiing and winter sports are popular. It isn’t entirely clear from the photograph whether these tights are ribbed or not.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-nor.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-nor.html Russian kindergarten boys wore white tights with rather longish short pants in a photograph that probably dates from the 1980s. Notice the very dressy, smooth-textured appearance.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/rus/lev/rsul-kind.html"
http://www.histclo.com/schun/country/rus/lev/rsul-kind.html A Russian fashion magazine (1981) shows a boy in green (or blue) short pants and white tights. Notice the matching white shoes.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-color.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-color.html Beige tights are being worn with dark short pants by a boy in a Russian park in 1983. A friend of the boy in tights wears fashionable bib overalls with long trousers.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-su.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/tr-su.html Another 1981 Russian fashion magazine shows a boy in smooth white tights worn under a dressy short-pants outfit. Most of the Russian tights seem to be smooth-textured.  HYPERLINK "http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1980.html"
http://www.histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1980.html 1990 During the 1990s Russian school children wore tights—both girls and boys. The boys wore them with shorts. Notice that these tights vary in color and seem to be manufactured with a nylon or perhaps spandex component.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1990.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-1990.html Acrylic and nylon tights for boys were advertised in Sweden during the 1990s. The material usually meant a smooth texture, or so, at least, it appears. See Fig. 2.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-fin.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-fin.html Swiss manufacturers in 1999 made ribbed tights to suit the entire family—mother, father, sons and daughters (Fig. 4). Notice the colors—pink, blue, grey, brown. These tights seem to have been worn in lieu of trousers or skirts for relaxation at home, although of course they could be worn under trousers or skirts for more public occasions—school, sports, play, etc.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/tight-swz.html Polish boys also wore tights apparently in the 1990s. A Polish fashion magazine shows a boy, a girl, and a mother all wearing tights with informal outfits (Fig. 2)  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-pol.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/tight-pol.html 2000 During the first decade of the twenty-first century, we see boys’ tights mingled with various contemporary fashions in boys’ dress. We note a Russian boy in smooth black tights, apparently of nylon or some synthetic weave (2000s), with blue jean shorts and a blue tee-shirt. These are obviously play clothes.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-2000.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/rus/chron/trc-2000.html All our images from the 2000s seem to involve very smoothly textured tights. Two boys from an unknown country (probably Germany or Eastern Europe) have adopted the American style of sloppy long denim shorts and oversized tee-shirts left loose and not tucked in. But they wear tights underneath their shorts—apparently cotton and nylon tights of very smooth texture in two different shades of brown. Here the “mod” style of boys’ clothes mingles rather strangely with the old-fashioned German idea that boys should wear long stockings or tights under their shorts. Notice the sneakers and white ankle socks. I doubt that the tights were insisted on by their mother. They seem to be wearing the latest fad and enjoying it. Of course tights are very comfortable on chilly days.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/unk/tu01.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/unk/tu01.html A February, 2005, Russian ad for school children’s clothes shows a handsome boy of about eleven wearing fashionable black tights of plain weave under short trousers with a colorfully striped athletic sweater or jumper with a sports number on the chest.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/rus/mcat-rus.html"
http://histclo.com/fashion/store/mail/cou/rus/mcat-rus.html A revealing 2005 photo of a Japanese teenager nicely illustrates the adaptation of tights to funky adolescent fashion. The boy, who is probably about 16, wears black tights with longish blue jean cutoffs, a striped jersey, and red ankle-high sneakers. It’s almost as if he were on his way to a rock concert. But he is probably a high-schooler. Note the backpack. I wonder what Japanese school, most of which are fairly strict about school uniforms, would allow this sort of deviation. Maybe it is a weekend and the boy is rebelling from his mandated weekly dress. Or maybe he is a high school dropout.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/jap/tjc-funk.html"
http://histclo.com/style/foot/tight/nat/jap/tjc-funk.html Finally, we have a 2006 South Korean advertisement showing boys in white tights and athletic shorts, nattily dressed for badminton. What is interesting here is the total absence of gender distinction. Both the boys and the girl wear the same sports uniform. Japan and Korea seem traditionally to have favored the idea of dressing young boys and girls as much alike as possible to help prevent fights and gender competition. Notice the athletic-style shoes.  HYPERLINK "http://histclo.com/ad/21/000/wavex05.html"
http://histclo.com/ad/21/000/wavex05.html