Digure 1.-- |
|
We have only limited information on nightshirts. We are not sure when they became commonly worn. We know they were worn in the 19th century, but we are not sure when they first appeared. I believe they were also worn in the 18th century, but have no information to substantiate this yet. A reader writes, "Before the 19th century the nightshirt was worn by few people. In several places of Europe the people go to bed naked, in other places wearing the day shirt. Only in 19th century the nightshirt became a common wear." Boys wore nightshirts to bed like their parents. Nightshirts were commonly worn throughout the 19th century. We note night shirts advertized in catalogs. One Americam pattern company offered night shirt patterns in 1869. We note an American boarding school, the Holderness School, in the 1880s. Until the middle of 20th century men and boys slept in similar nightshirts. The nightshirt was a bedtime garment styled like a man’s shirt. It was done in various lengths, usually to the knee or calf. It had a rounded hem and a slash at the side seams. Most of the nightshirts we have seen are white. We are not sure if there were colored or print nightshirts. Other specialized sleepwear like pajamas and sleepers only appeared in the 20th century. We notice German mailorder catalogs offering nightshirts into the 1950s. A Bulgarian reader tells us, Nightshirts were no longer common in Bulgaria when I was a boy in the 1970s. They were earlier very common. My grandmother who was a little old fashion made me a nightshirt when I was 10 years old. I remember that I rather liked it."
We have only limited information on nightshirts. We are not sure when they became commonly worn. We know they were worn in the 19th century, but we are not sure when they first appeared. I believe they were also worn in the 18th century, but have no information to substantiate this yet. A reader writes, "Before the 19th century the nightshirt was worn by few people. In several places of Europe the people go to bed naked, in other places wearing the day shirt. Only in 19th century the nightshirt became a common wear." Boys wore nightshirts to bed like their parents. Nightshirts were commonly worn throughout the 19th century. We note night shirts advertized in catalogs. One Americam pattern company offered night shirt patterns in 1869. We are not sure when pajamas first appeared. We do note that both were offered in the 1900s, but by the end oif the decade that pajamas were becomng increasingly popular for boys. Some catalogs indicated that they could also be worn by girls. A reader tells usin 2008, "Night shirts are still sold by JC Penney and others, but on the Internet rather than in their stores."
The nightshirt as far as we can tell was a general sleepwear garment. They were worn by people of all ages. Styling might be different for various age groups, but we do not have enough information to assess this yet.
Night shirts were worn at boarding schools as well as home. We note an American boarding school, the Holderness School, in the 1880s. Until the middle of 20th century men and boys slept in similar nightshirts. The nightshirt was a bedtime garment styled like a man’s shirt. It was done in various lengths, usually to the knee or calf. It had a rounded hem and a slash at the side seams. Most of the nightshirts we have seen are white. We are not sure if there were colored or print nightshirts. Other specialized sleepwear like pajamas and sleepers only appeared in the 20th century. A Belgian reader tells us that he wore nightshirts at school in the 1960s.
We have very limited country information a this time. Pajamas seem to have become widely wirn in America and Britain during the early 20th century. They seemed to have persisted longer on the continent. A Bulgarian reader tells us, Nightshirts were no longer common in Bulgaria when I was a boy in the 1970s. They were earlier very common. My grandmother who was a little old fashion made me a nightshirt when I was 10 years old. I remember that I rather liked it." We notice German mailorder catalogs offering nightshirts into the 1950s. A Brirish reader reports staying with a German family about 1970. He rememnbers that the German boy wore a nightshirt to bed.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Return to the Main sleepwear page]
[Introduction]
[Activities]
[Biographies]
[Chronology]
[Clothing styles]
[Countries]
[Topics]
[Bibliographies]
[Contributions]
[FAQs]
[Anglo-Indian glossary]
[Images]
[Links]
[Registration]
[Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]