Figure 1.-- Some mothers did not precisely master the concept of a sports collar. Thus we see mothers adding neckties for dtressy or sometimes even casual occassions. This boy wears a tie with his sports collar even thpugh he is at the beach. People in the 1920s and 30s still might dress up fpr promendaing on the boardwalk. The photograph here is undated, but we would guess was taken about 1930. The boy's shirt loooks to be a pastel shade. but we are not sure what color.

These large sports collars were an especially popular style in the United States. This was a popular open-collar style that appeared in the 1910s and was particularly popular in the 20s and 30s. We continue to see them into the early 1940s. It looks somewhat like a sailoir collar, but I am not sure that was the origin. The open-neck sports was a substantial break with former styles which commonly required boys to not only, button their collars, but wear elaborate neckwear. Open neck collars were part of the revolution allowing informal styles that followed World war I. It was also popular in Europe. In Germany it was called a Schiller collar. We are not entirely sure of the chronology, but we note them particularly in the 1920s-30s. A good example is an unidentified St. Louis boy in 1922. It was a comfortable style that was popular with boys. They were odten worn with a scarfe-like tie. We see large numbers of boys with these sports collars in the photographic record. We note these shirts being worn both for casual play wear as well when dressing up with suits. The idea of casual wear was still relatively new. Some mothers had not precisely mastered the concept. Thus we see mothers adding neckties for dtressy or sometimes even casual occassions. The sports collar was not made for a necktie. Thus the combination has rather a strange look. The collars varied somewhat in size and shape. They were usually white shirts, but we have noted colored and striped shirts. We are not sure where the sports collar originated.

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Created: 6:29 PM 8/3/2008
Last updated: 9:58 PM 2/18/2010