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Here we see two Mississippi brothers wearing matching sailor-style outfits in 1935 with open-toe sandals. Mississppi is a southern state with a hot climate, especially during the Summer. This of course affected the clothing children wore. The portrait was taken in 1935. The boys wear similar, but not identical white open-toe sandals. Growing up in America during the 1940s and 50s, I never saw boys wearing sandals like this. The boy on the right is wearing a style of sandals that are very popular today.
The boys in this portrait are unidentified. We do not know their names. They almost certainly are brothers. They look to be 2-3 year old. The outfit suggests to us that they came from an affluent family.
While we do not know who the children were, we do know that the portrait was taken in 1935.
Mississppi is a southern state with a hot climate, especially during the Summer. This of course affected the clothing children wore. We tend to see southern boys wearing short pants more than northern boys. There were, however, other facyors involved, such as social class. Boys from more affluent families were more likely to wear short pants than boys from poor families. Often poor children often wore overalls.
Many mothers liked to dress their children in identical outfits. The sailor outfits are identical. The open-toe sandals, however, are a little different. One pair has a center strap. This is a little curious. If mother is goung to dress the children identically, why choose sandals that are slightly different?
The sailor-style outfit the little boys wear was not a common one. We have very few images of boys twearing this or similar outfits. It looks to be a one-piece outfit eith the sailor "V" collar converted into straps. I'm not sure just how to describe it. We have, however, seen outfits like this in mailorder catalogs.
A reader writes, "The outfits look like a very early version of a shortall. The sailor top used to create a type of suspender. It is quite remarkable." We arenot entirely sure how shortalls evolved we had thought that bib-front overalls wee an early inspiration.
The boys wear similar, but not identical white open-toe sandals. Note that one has a center strap. We have very few images of boys in the period wearing sandals like this. Growing up in America during the 1940s and 50s, I never saw boys wearing sandals like this. Of course these boys are very young and thus not yet influenced by attitudes that older boys may have. The boy on the right is wearing a style of sandals that are very popular today.
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