Figure 1.--Sometimes HBC is simply mistified by old photographs and this is a case in point. This photograph was taken about 1910 and one of the children is a boy named Cyril.
|
Figure 1.--Sometimes HBC is simply mistified by old photographs and this is a case in point. This photograph was taken about 1910 and one of the children is a boy named Cyril. |
Sometimes HBC is simply mistified by old photographs and this is a case in point. This photograph was taken about 1910 and one of the children is a boy named Cyril. We do not know his last name. He and his sisters appear to be waering fancy bonnets and white dresses and smocks. Cyril wears dark long stockings, his sisters white long stockings. Cyril looks to be about 8-10 years old and this attire rather inappropriate for a boy his age in 1910. Unfortunately no details on the photograph are available.
We know a little bit about the children shown here. The script on back of the photo postcard identifies the children as "Eva, Cyrill, and Margauite (writing indestinct). Their last name is no given. We assume that the names are written in the order they appear in the photgraph, meaning Cyril would be the child in the middle and he in fact looks rather boyish, although the child on the left also looks boyish. Given their virtually identical outfits, we can only assume that the children are brothers and sisters.
The age of the children is not noted, but we would guess about 11, 9, and 7 years old.
The postcard is an American image. The photograph was almost certainly taken in Iowa, a Midwestern state. There is no address on the back, only the childrens names, and the words "Armstrong, Mallard" , which are towns in Iowa. These two towns are
about 50 miles apart, as the crow flies. The bonnet styles indeed seems like something Midwestern children might have worn and not stylishly dressed Northeasterb children.
The card looks to have been sent about 1910,. This is because outdoor snapshots were unusual before the turn of the 20th century. Inaddition this real photo post card has a KRUXO divided back which dates it to about 1910. Surely it must have been taken before the 1920s. HBC finds an older boy wearing a white dress in 1910 a little suprising, although a smock would have been somewaht more plausible.
The photograph is overexposed so details are not possible to make out, but we can see some details about the children's outfits:
The white bonnets are not identical, but all styled alike. Cyril's bonnet, for example, has a larger top or crown and a smaller brim-like area. Each bonnet has ribbon, although we do not know what color. There also appear to be flowers attached. Certainly they were all made by the same person, either their mother or a seamstress.
The children all seem to be wearing basically the same white dresses, or possibly white smocks. The image is indestinct, but there are minot differences. The older girl has a frilled hem while the younger children have plain hems. Cyril dress or smock has short sleeves while the firls have elbow-length sleeves. HBC does not know if this is conincidence or an actual stylistic difference.
The principal differece is the stockings. All three chidren wear long stockings, but Cyril had darkmstockings while the girls wear white stickings.
Because of their bonnents, we can not make out much about hair styles. It is clear that the younger girl had ringlet curls.
HBC is unsure why Cyril was dressed in this rather outlandish outfit. We can only assume that their mother wanted to dress the children alike. It is not clear to HBC if this is their dressy outfits or rather an informal outfit for a picnic or casual outing. This we do not know if the mother dressed them alike for outings are dress up fancu occassions or all the time.
A HBC reader comments, "The name of the last sister could be Marguerite. It is a French version of Margaret, but it is used since the 19th century in the English speaking world, as the name was used since then for a garden flower (sort of a dasy). The picture might be taken near a wood. I can see the trunk of a tree at the right side and some branches in the back of it. On the ground I can see death leaves and closer to the children some grass. I think you can see some hair under the bonnet of the girl on the left side, but this is speculative. And if it would be right, you couldn't really recognize a special hair cut, as you can see at the girl on the right side."
Another reader comments, "This is indeed a rather strange image and like HBC I don't know what to make of it. In the uncroped original there is another child in the background wearing a white dresss, dark stocking, and frilly hat. Maybe they are all actors in a child's production?" HBC is doubtful, if so the adults probably had trouble recruiting boys. At any rate, HBC has no better explanation to offer.
Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web Headwear Pages:
[Return to the Main baby headwear page]
[Return to the Main headwear page]
[Caps]
[Hats]
[Berets]
[Hair]
Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web chronological pages:
[The 1880s]
[The 1890s]
[The 1900s]
[The 1910s]
[The 1920s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
Navigate the Historic Boys' Clothing Web Site:
[Introduction]
[Activities]
[Bibliographies]
[Biographies]
[Chronologies]
[Countries]
[Style Index]
[Contributions]
[Expanded Site]
[Frequently Asked Questions]
[Glossaries]
[Satellite sites]
[Boys' Clothing Home]