Figure 1.--This undaed cabinet card portrait shows two unidentified boys. We would guess it was taken in the 1880, possibly the early-80s. The boys look to be about 11-13 years, perhaps 14 years of age. They are posed wearing suits and holding identical straw, rounded-crown hats. The younger boys is sitting on a swing. The younger boy wears a knee pants sailor suit. The older boy wears a vested long pants suit. Both boys have white cross ties. The younger boy is wearing long stockings and dancing pumps. Although we can only estimate the ages, this tell us that in this family boys graduated to long pahts at about 12-14 years of age. The studio is A.J. Fox in Saint Louis, Missouri.

Men and boys of all ages wore knee breeches (18th century). This began to change for younger boys, but not for 13-year olds at the end of the century when long pants skeleton suits appeared. Long pahnts became common for yonger boys in the early-19th century. We are not sure about 13-years olds. We suspect this varied depending on social class. Upper-class men ad some teenagers continued wearing knee beeeches for a time. Virtually all boys and men were wearing long pants (1820s). Shortened-length patns did not appear until mid-century, but they were for younger boys. Gradually older boys began wearing knee pants. This was still mot very common in the 1880s as can be seen here (figur1), but by the 1890s many 13-year olds and most younger boys were wearing knee pants, especially in urban ares. The major exceptions were boys living in rural areas and boys who had left school and began working. But even some working boys wore knee pants in the late-19th and early-20th century. Both 13-year olds wore knee pants (1900s), not all, but most. Knickers becane common (1910s) and we see many youngr teenagrs wearing them. They were very commn for 13-year olds. Short pants were worn by yonge boys but not very commonly by teenagers, even yiunger teens like 13-year olds. They continued to be common, but older teenagers began wearing long pants (1920s). Knickers declined in popularity during the 1930s, but we sill see a few younger teens wearing them. Knickers disappeared in the early-40s, but it was mostly younger boys wearing them. Almostall 13-year olds wore long pants (1950s). There were a few exeptions like Scouts and summer camps. Jeans were widely adopted by teenagers in the 1950s. Most boys wore long pants, but short pants began to become popular for casul summer wear. And as school standards became more casual we begin to ee boys commonly wearing the lonish cut shorts, often cargo style to school (1990s). Long pants often jeaans were sandard, but these longish shorts were also very common, especially in warm weather. (1960s)..

Created: 1:01 AM 11/8/2012
Last updated: 1:01 AM 11/8/2012