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Ringlet curls were a style for childrn from affluent families. This does not mean just upper-class or rich families, it als means middle-class families in confortable circumstances. This is relatively easy to assess by the way the child or family is dressed. Boys with ringlet curls are lmost lways well drsednd in group potraits with well-dressed family members. We don't think this meant that working-class fmilies had different fashion tastes. In fact at the time it was the elites of society that set the fashion trends. Middle class and working-class families tried to emiulate, but only middle-class families could aford to do so. Hair styling was different as this did not involve the purchase of expensive clothing and/or fabrics. Ringlet curls only required time and it took a good bit if work to do them. At the time modern hir products were not available. Working-class mothgers were less likely to have the time to do this. Some had to work. And they could not afford to hire domestic staff to assisst with household chores like the upper-class or affluent middle class. One child might be doable, but commonly at the time families were larger. It is notable that ringlet curls were more common in america thn any other country/. This is clearly observeable in the photograohic record. There are an emense number of portraits of American boys with ringlet curls. Ringlets like fancy clthes like Fauntleroy suits were away that families could show off their material success. The photographic record shows that many more American boys had ringlet curls than boys in in any other country, in fact more thn all of Europe to gether. Of course the United States was a large and growing country, but not as large as the modern population. The European population at the turn of the 20th century was five times the population of North America (primarily the United States). We believe that the large number oif Anerican boys with ringlet curls in the photogrphic record reflects the economic vibrancy of the United States nbd the higher income levels in the United States compared to Europe, including the most prosperous Western European countries (Britain, France, and Germany). This is often missed in American school textbooks because the editors are more interested in demonstrating poor living conditions than the act that standards of living in Americ were the highest in the world.
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