Figure 1.--Bows are normally associated with girls, but this convention changed duting the Fauntleroy era. Here we see four Illinois children, we think in the 1890s. Notice that the boys wears a polka dot floppy boy and fancy Fauntleroy blouse. None of his sisters, however, have bows. This probably relkated to the idea that nboys don't like wearing clothes assiociated with girls. Do during the Fauntleroy era we find mothers using fewer bows for girls. The studio looks to be Parett in Wenkina, Illinois.

Bows in America and other countries for boys are generally seen as neckwear. This does seem to be the most common use of bows, especially in conection with boys wear. And neckwear is clearlt the most obvius and vusible use of bows. Neckwear was, however, not the only use of bows for boys. Actually bows can and were worn for many other decorative purposes, although they were not as visible as neckwear. Mothers here were very ingenious as regards the use of bows for both boys and girls. Bows were very popular in the 19th century for several different purposes. We are not entirely sure why they were so popular in the 19th century. We note hair bows, dress bows, shoulder bows, and shoe bows. They were not nearky as common or as prominant as the use of collar bows. Less prominant were shoe bows. Hair bows were certainly visible, but they wre not nearly as common as collar bows. The principal appearance of all these bow types seems roughly the same period of time, the late 19th and very early 20th centuries. Bows can be observed outside this tome period, but not nearly as common. There were both gender and age conventions, but boys did wear the various types of decorative bows. We note the bows becoming more modest after the turn-of-the 20th century.

Popularity

Actually bows can and were worn for many other decorative purposes, although they were not as visible as neckwear. Mothers here were very ingenious as regards the use of bows for both boys and girls. Bows were very popular in the 19th century for several different purposes. We are not entirely sure why they were so popular in the 19th century.

Types

Bows in America and other countries for boys are generally seen as neckwear. This does seem to be the most common use of bows, especially in conection with boys wear. And neckwear is clearlt the most obvius and vusible use of bows. Neckwear was, however, not the only use of bows for boys. We note hair bows, dress bows, shoulder bows, and shoe bows. They were not nearly as common or as prominant as the use of collar bows. Less prominant were shoe bows. Hair bows were certainly visible, but they wre not nearly as common as collar bows. There were both gender and age conventions, but boys did wear the various types of decorative bows.

Neckwear

Bows in America and other countries for boys are generally seen as neckwear. This does seem to be the most common use of bows, especially in conection with boys wear. And neckwear is clearlt the most obvius and vusible use of bows. One of the most destinctive styles of neckwear worn by Ameican boys was the floppy bow. This was a style worn by adults at the turn of the 19th century. It was popular during the Regency in Britain where it was worn by Beau Brummel. I thimk it was less common in America. When the floppy bow reappeared beginning in the late 1870s, it seems to have been a style particular popular in America. Large numbers of images show boys wearing large floppy bows in the late-19th century. This may be because our American archive is so substantial, but our Europen archives are growing and it does seem that floppy bows, esoecially large floppy bows were especially popular in America. This makes sence because it was strongly associated with the Fauntleroy style. And the Fauntleroy craze was espeilly pronounced in America. They were also worn in Europe, but we seem to see many more examples in America, especially the large floppy bows. And floppy bow at this time were a distinctly juvenile style. They were worn with equally large collars of various descriptions. Wearing floppy bows with fancy blouses was an optional matters. Some mothers insiste on the bows while others did not. They were worn with more plainly styled bows like Eton collars, but this was less common.

Shoe bows

Less prominant were shoe bows. For some reason we begin to see bows on shoes around the turn of the century. We only note them on lpe-cut hoes for dress occassions. Most boiys wore hightop shoes until the turn of the 20th century. We do not yet have an American shoe bow page, but do have a general shoe bow page. We see a lt of boys ibn French commercuial oost cards with shoe boes, but of course thatbis not a vertbrelkaible indiucator of actual usage. Most of the actual portarit we are found are of American boys.

Hair bows

Hair bows were certainly visible, but they wre not nearly as common as collar bows And they were only worn by ypounger boys. They were common in the 19th century, but not much seen in the 20th century.Hair bows appar to have been most common in Europe. We had noted relatively few photographs in Britain and the United States of boys wearing hairbows. The practice on the continent, especially France seems to have been more widespread. As HBC has developed we have noted more images of American boys wearing hairbows than we had anticipated. We note that in the wealth of photographs of American and British boys in Fauntleroy suits and Fauntleroy dresses, even the ones still in curls, I had noted only a few with boys having the added indignity of wearing girlish hair ribbons, but are now coming to the conclusion that they wer more common that we had initially anticiapted. What we have not yet determined is what the conventions for these hairbows was. Were they just for portraits and special occassions or would a boy wear one around the house from day to day.

Sleeve bows

We note decorative sleeve bows. This was a 20th century innovation. They appeared as the collar bow had declined n popularity. They were mostly used as part of First Communion outfits in the early-20th century. We do not yet have a separate page on these bows, but notice many American boys wearing them for First Communion.

Chronology

While there were a variety of bow types, the dominant and most obvious type and easy to follow was the collar bow. They really stand out as a feature of boys' clothing, although for a relatively short time period. This is fair well established in the photographic record because it occurred at a time that photography had become a well developed industry. Not only had it reached a price point that most Americans could afford, but the earnings of American workers were rising. The result is an enormous photographic record, the largest of any country. And it was almost entirely studio photography for which parents dressed up in their best outfits and of course spruced up their children adding decorative touches for the event. Photography was not invented in America, but no country took to it to a greater extent than America. The popularity of both photography and bows occurred not only at a time that America was experiencing enormous industrial expansion, but when families with modest origins were sharing in the country's prosperity. This included immigrant families flooding into the country to pursue the American dream. Interestingly, modern historiography influenced by the woke agenda tends to focus on the difficulties immigrant faced. They were real, but in reality not only did immigrants flock to America, but the vast majority experienced substantial improvements in their life experiences. Relatively few returned to Europe. And like native-born Americans, they wanted to show off their new success. Clothing, including children's clothing, was one way of doing that. And the decorative touches after the mid-19th century outpaced anything in Europe. American mothers subjected their boys to a veritable sartorial arms race focused on their boys that make American boys stand out in the photographic record of the late-19th and early-20th century. And the bow was a very important part of this. Collar bows were flamboyant and a relatively inexpensive way of doing that. There were other types of bows, but the collar bow really stands out. The principal appearance of all these bow types seems roughly the same chronological period -- the late- 19th and very early-20th centuries. Bows can be observed outside this time period, but not nearly as common. Hair bows may have been a little different, but this is difficult to assess as we have such limited information from the early-19th century. An exception was the sleeve bow, a 20th centuryb inovation for Catholic boys doing their First Communion. There were both gender and age conventions, but boys did wear the various types of decorative bows. We note the bows becoming more modest after the turn-of-the 20th century. A good example of the declining bow sizes after the turn-of-the 20th century is Roy Swanson

Gender

Mothers here were very ingenious as regards the use of bows for both boys and girls. Bows are mostly assocuated with boys, byr foir about three deacdes (1880-1910), many boys wore bows, incluing large floppy bows. This was most common during the Fauntleroy era (1885-1905), but not limited to it. Hair bows, for example, were common throughout the 19th century for very young boys. Interestingly, when boys wore collar bows, usually the girls did not as we can see with yhe Illionois childrn here in the 1890s (figure 1)

Created: 9:00 PM 10/6/2008
Last updated: 5:04 PM 4/18/2023