Figure 1.--This is a professionlly posed portrit of two bothers. Perhaps dad was a photo enntusiast. It is mounted like a cabinet card, but with no studio information. The boys look to be about 5-10 years old. We believe that the photograph was taken about 1900. Both boys wear school caps although the younger boy looks a little young for school. Notice his huge collar. His older brother wear a single breasted jacket with knickers and long stockings. The knichers were are the bloomer knickers type..
There are two basic types of knickers, primarily have to to do with the knee hem closutre. Stanfards knickers were done with a a button or clasp closure. There were also bloomer knickers sine with a draw strung closure like a blouse. In most photograpohs it is difficult, actially impossibkle ro tell the difference. All adult knickers were done with the buttons or ckaspo closure. The bloomer knickets were an exclusively boys style. We do not, at this time, have a good fix, on how common the two different types were. Our ininial assessment is that knickers in the late-19th century were widely worn at school, especially private schools. We also see Liitle Lord Fauntekeiy suits done with knicker pamts. In America, Fauntleroy suits were almost always done with knee pants. The boy here wears bloomer knickers about 1900 (figure 1).
