Figure 1.--Here we have a Breton boy in his First Communion suit with his family. The family here was taken in the Kerangoff district of Brest, the famous naval port on the very Western tip of Brittany during 1955. The First Communionn boy wears an Eton suit. Also notice the white gloves.

Here we have a Breton boy in his First Communion suit with his family. The family here was taken in the Kerangoff district of Brest, the famous naval port on the very Western tip of Brittany during 1955. Brest is twinned with Plymouth - Britain's major naval base. The First Communionn boy wears an Eton suit. Also notice the white gloves.A British reader writes, "Here is a family First Communion photograph from Britanny. It is interesting in that the boy taking communion is dressed as an English 19th century boy would be! The elder women are wearing the traditional Breton lace bonnets and are dressed in black. I always like to identify Mum's and Dad's features in Family photos and I would say that the two older boys and their sister take after the Mum - standing between them - (facial features!) yet the youngest boy takes after the Father (behind him to the right). Anyway I may be wrong! Other comments - the women wear gloves (the girl included) but so does the boy taking communion and they (the women) wear hats but the boys/men do not. Also the older boys seem to be allowed to have longer hair but not the younger one. Finally as always short socks for girls and boys seem to be "dresssy" in France (Britanny but that may be debatable!) yet here in England kneesocks would be the norm - especially in that era except for the very youngest boys (up until 8 or 9 years). A French reader writes, "Notice the boy on the left. By the late 1950s this style of suit began to be fashionable. It is called " un complet " or a " costume ". Notice also he is wearing under his suit a " gilet " or weater. It was very commun for all boys at the time. The gilet reached just to the waist. They often were knitted by the grandmother. It probanly was sleeveless. The white gloves the Firtst Communion boy is wearing are a symbol of purity. A boy, girl or a woman can't shake the hand with then. The youngr sister is wearing a dress made from " Boussac " material. The sort of flounce? around her dress was in fashion for dresses and rompers during the 1950s. Notice the longth : slightly above the knee for girl more 8 years, and shorter for the smaller girl. Finaly, this family is perfect representative of the middle-class French family in the 1950s. The elderly lady with her hat, necessery to enter the chuch. In Bretagne (Brittany) the elderly peoples speak sometime a dialect close to Gaelic."

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Created: 11:04 PM 3/5/2007
Last edited: 5:48 PM 3/10/2007