Figure 1.-- Here we see a German primary school in 1949. Note that the children are barefoot. Note that many boys wear halters, but few wear actual Lederhosen. We suspect that Lederhosen were expensive and difficult to obtain after the War--especially in the Soviet occupation zone. Notice the poster on the building at the back.

We notice the boys at Hermsdorf School in the 1930s wearing a wide range of jackets, suits, and sweaters. The different school images over time represent an interesting view of German children and their clothing over time. Few boys wear ties. This might be expected at this seems to be a primsry school. Some of the younger boys wear sailor suits. Most boys wear short pants with short pants. Boys in the early 1940s wear casual shirts and sweaters, still commonly with short pants. Some boys wear their Hitler Youth uniforms. We are not sure how common that was. HBC readers have commented on the hosiery the boys are wearing during the 1930s. Here seasonality was a major factor. After the War we see many childern going barefoot because of the difficult economic conditions.

The 1920s

We note a 1929 class photo taken in chilly weather at Hermsdorf School. Notice that the short trousers are rather longer than shorts worn in the the 1930s and 1940s, almost like knee trousers. The children seem to be about eleven years old--upper primary school, apparently. No 6 wears a sailor suit with beige or light tan long stockings. No. 8 has a rather chick sweater-type knitted top with a belt on top and checked short trousers with black long stockings. No. 16 is wearing long underwear under the rather wrinkled tan stockings, wrinkled because his supporters are too loose or have lost their elasticity. The teacher is rather sportily dressed in breeches with checked knee socks. The girls of course mostly wear long stockings.

The 1930s

We note one school portrait taken in 1934. Most of the boys wear short pants, some with kneesocks, others with long stockings. The hosiery here is interesting. Boy 1 and 3 appears to be wearing rolled socks over their long stockings. Boy 11 has very lumpy long stockings. Two boys wear sailor suits. Also notice how few boys have cropped hair cuts. Click on the image to see the older children at the school.

The 1940s

The 1940s was a tumultuous decade for the children of Hermsdorf. The first half if the decade they were part of NAZI Germany. WThe second half they were under Soviet rule. We note an image from the school in 1941 with the older children n a country outing. We note another 1941 image when all the children are wearing their Hitler Youth uniforms. This must have been some kind of special day. Often a few children wore their uniforms to school, but for all the children ti wear their uniforms it must have been some kind of special occassion. The town does not appear to have been heavily damaged during the War. It was the cities that were bombed. Unlike the situation in the East, there was relatively little damage in small towns and villages after the Western Allies crossed the Rhine. The town was first taken by the Americans, probany in April 1945. As Hermsdorf lay in the pre-arranged Soviet occupation zone, the Americans moved out and the Red Army moved in. The town was thus under Soviet military rule and eventually the control of East German Communists. Ecoconomic conditions in Germant were very difficult. We can see that in the 1949 photograph here (figure 1). Note that the children are barefoot. Note that many boys wear halters, but few wear actual Lederhosen. We suspect that Lederhosen were expensive and difficult to obtain after the War--especially in the Soviet occupation zone.

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Created: 9:28 PM 12/20/2005
Last updated: 2:58 AM 10/21/2009