Figure 1.-- Here is an ad for Ward's Summer Waist Union Suits from the Wards Spring and Summer catalog of 1926, p. 77. These summer-weight waist union suits are offered in styles for a boy or a girl. These suits are for boys and girls from 2 to 12 years old. They were popular in the summer because they allowed children to dispense with an additional underwaist. |
Here is an ad for Ward's Summer Waist Union Suits from the Wards Spring and Summer
catalog of 1926, p. 77. These summer-weight waist union suits are offered in
styles for a boy or a girl. These suits are for boys and girls from 2 to 12 years old. They were popular in the summer because they allowed children to dispense with an additional underwaist. Short trousers or skirts could be buttoned to the waistband of the waist union suit, and supporters for long stockings could be pinned to metal tubes attached to the waist.
Here is an ad for Ward's Summer Waist Union Suits from the Wards Spring and Summer
catalog of 1926, p. 77. This underwaist ad is from Ward's 1926 Spring and Summer catalog, p. 156. Although the word "consumerism" has a modern ring, it was personal concern for an early consumer movement, the "National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry," That inspired a young traveling salesman named Aaron Montgomery Ward to start the world's first general merchandise mail-order company in 1872.
The garment advertised here is a waist union suit. The waist union suit was purchased as an alternative to an underwaist and additional underwear. The idea was to avoid the necessity of an underwaist. Advertisements had a range of terms for these support garments. Here they are just referred to as union suits. In the early 1920s the “waist union suit” for children was invented, which combined the functions of the adult-style
underwear with those of the “waist” so that only one undergarment was necessary. Waist union suits became popular for children (both boys and girls) from about age 2 to age 13 or 14. They went out of style in the mid-1940s when boys ceased to wear long stockings with either shorts or knickers into their teen-age years and began to wear long trousers at earlier
ages.
These summer-weight waist union suits are offered in
styles for a boy or a girl.
These suits are for boys and girls from 2 to 12 years old.
They were popular in the summer because they allowed children to dispense with an additional underwaist.
Short trousers or skirts could be buttoned to the waistband of the waist union suit, and supporters for long stockings could be pinned to metal tubes attached to the waist.
These suits have button closures at the shoulder to allow for expansion when the child
grew taller. These suits have drop seats as illustrated in the back view. The boy's suit has a fly front and straight legs. The girl's model has bloomers. Note that the boy's style has reinforcement straps where the waist buttons and supporter tabs end so as to
offer more support for trousers and long stockings. The girl's model is not reinforced with straps, but girls perhaps put less strain on their underwear.
The material is cotton nainsook, the same material out of which men's BVDs were made during the same period.
The Wards ad copy read, "65 c. New Style [Waist] Union Suits for Boys and Girls. Extra comfortable long wearing Union Suits of good quality check nainsook with reinforced knit insert across back. Roomy three-button drop seat made double for extra wear, has continuous binding to prevent ripping. Girls' suit has hemistitched neck and armholes and bloomer knee. Boys' suit has straight leg and double back yoke with self-reinforcing over shoulders. Six taped-on buttons at waist for attaching outer garments [such as skirts or short trousers]. Fly front. Both styles have metal pin tubes for hose supporters and have two-button closing on left shoulder. White only. Sizes: 2 to 12 years. State size wanted. 29 D 717 Bloomer knee 65 c. 29 D 718 Straight knee 65 c. Postage 3 c. extra."
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