Figure 1.--Here we have another Canadian turn-of-the-century studio portrait, This one was taken of 'Master Molson' in Montreal on January 24, 1900. The Molson boy, whose Christian name we don't know, but is probably Percival. He looks to be about 8-9 years old in this portrait. He wears an all white sailor suit, except for the embroidered anchor on the dickey. Notice that he wears what we might think of as a summer sailor suit (white) but that was apparently considered dress-up wear for boys even in frigid January.

Here we have another Canadian turn-of-the-century studio portrait, This one was taken of 'Master Molson' in Montreal on January 24, 1900. The Molson's of course are famous for founding a brewery. This Molson boy, whose Christian name we don't know, but could be William Hobart Molson (1888�1951), the only son of Dr. William Alexander Molson. He seems to be the family member closest in age to this boys, but the dates seem a little off. The boy here looks to be about 8-9 years old in this portrait. He wears an all white sailor suit, except for the embroidered anchor on the dickey. Notice that he wears what we might think of as a summer sailor suit (white) but that was apparently considered dress-up wear for boys even in frigid January. Wearing white in the Winter seems to have been more common in Canada (at least Montreal than in the States. The white sailor suit is interesting. The dickey has an anchor showing at the chest opening and a matching white tie loosely knotted below the large open collar. The suit has a bloused top and long sleeves but no ornamental buttons at the hem of the knee pants. The ornamental buttons seem to be another convention that was less common in Canada than in America. The dress-up strap shoes (or slippers) have ribbon ties across the instep. Under the black ribbed stockings you can make out the long underwear, usual for boys during cold Canadian winters. The boy has a somewhat modern looking short haircut with no obvious part. A Canadian reader tells us, "You have to know that the Molson Family was famous in Canada and mainly in Montreal where they lived because they founded a brewery which was famous and still is. The also founded a bank and were the owner of the Canadien Hockey Club which was the home of celebrities like Maurice Richard. This club won the Stanley Club more than any other Club in the National Hockey League (NHL). Montreal was renowned for its beer drinkers at such a point that Montreal was called "The city with a hundred churches and a thousand taverns. " Our reader believes that in connection with dates that the young boy here is Percival Molson. We beliece that Percival born in 1880 would have been 20 years old when this photograph was taken. So we don't think it was Percival. Karen Molson has written a book about the family.

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Created: 11:52 PM 9/30/2005
Last edited: 2:24 PM 4/29/2019