Figure 1.--These unidentified brothers were photographed about 1905-10. The younger boy wears a sailor suit with a non-traditional collar. Note the plaidcscarfe. nHis older brother wears a collr-butting suit. Both boys wear knickers with black long stockings. The boys look to be about 6-9 years old. Notice the older brother is wearing a watch fob. The younger boy is wearing bloomer knickers andchis older brother proper knickers.

Age conventions in America varied chronologically and by siocial class. We note boys commonly wearing sailor suits during the 19th century, especially the 1880s-90s. We see sailors suits made in sizes up to about 12-13 years of age. The older boys wearing them, however seem primarily from well-to-do families. Working-class boys were less likely to wear sailor suits, especially older boys. Many family portraits show the younger boys in the family wearing sailor suits. This not only meant the pre-teen boys, but the younger boys, usally about 10 years old or less. This varied from family to family. Sailor suits were also common during the early 20th century. They were widely worn after World War I in the 1920s ads 30s, but mostly by younger boys.

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Created: 2:38 AM 7/27/2010
Last updated: 2:38 AM 7/27/2010