Figure 1.-- Neckties were by far the most important neckwear in the 20th century. Boys commonly wore suits and ties to school in the early 20th century and we usually see at least one boy in class portaits wearing a bow tie, sometimes more in the 1900s and 10s. This became less common by the 1930s, both because bowties became less populsr and suits began to be worn less to school. This looks to us like a private school class, both because of the formality in dress and the small class size. Notice the two teachers, one with an old fashioned wing collar. Only one boy wears a necktie. The portrait is undated, but was probabl;y taken about 1920. Click on the image for a fuller discussion of the clothing the boys are wearing.

We are also not sure of the relationship between neckties and bow ties. They seem to have become popular at about the same time, more or less thec turn of the 20th century. Floppy bows went out of style during the 1900s and were replaced by bowties and neckties. We do not know, however, if they evolved independently or if there was a common thread. Neckties were by far the most important of the two. Boys commonly wore suits and ties to school in the early 20th century and we usually see at least one boy in class portaits wearing a bow tie, sometimes more in the 1900s and 10s. This became less common by the 1930s, both because bowties became less populsr and suits began to be worn less to school. We are not entirely sure why neckties became the standard neckwear for both men and boys.

Created: 3:03 AM 7/2/2008
Last updated: 6:50 PM 7/2/2008