General Background Information

For varying reasons, men's civilian fashion has long been a neglected aspect of clothing history. Men's clothing changed very little from the 1840's to well after the civil war. By the 1840s, the frock coat became everyday business wear through the remainder of the century. The "sack suit" of the 1850s had developed into a standard cut by the time of the war and continued to evolve. There were changes from decade to decade, but they were minor and the general "look" remained the same. In many cases clothing was class specific, not generally in the style of clothing, but more in fabric and construction details. New innovations were many times the result of new technology.

By the 1860s the "ready-made" clothing industry was in full swing. Ready-made was the term used for clothing that a business was commissioned to make for someone else to sell to the public. These ready-made items were much cheaper to purchase than tailor made items. Thus New York City became one of the most important antebellum clothing manufacturing centers. The large clothing factories or sweat shops manufactured the clothing that was bought to be sold all over the United States, especially the South. However, with the coming of the war, the New York clothing industry almost collapsed leading to the movement from within NYC to secede from the Union). These ready-made items were much cheaper to purchase than tailor made items. Additionally, there was a vigorous second hand clothing business, which was almost exclusively men's until the later part of the century.

The ready-made industry in addition to second hand clothing spelled doom for home manufactured goods, and by the time of the war this method of clothing manufacture was in great decline, although there was somewhat of revival in the south during the war years.

For several reasons there are very few examples of men's clothing from the first two-thirds of the nineteenth century. Many clothes were reworked more than once and men's garments were very often worn until they were no longer repairable. Furthermore men's clothing was not at the mercy of fashion as were women's clothing. Therefore a man could get more use out of a single suit of clothes than a lady could out of a single dress.

It is not the purpose of these standards to outline all the details of garment construction, but rather to provide guidance as to the proper clothing to acquire for a men's civilian impression. It is necessary to have properly constructed garments in order to obtain the correct "look" of an 1860's civilian. Generally, construction details affect the "hang" of the garment and the "fall" of the fabric and it is imperative to either examine originals to see these details or to find a tailor who has experience making reproduction clothing.

It is to be noted that when viewed in the light of a military impression, some of these standards do not hold up. These standards are strictly for civilian use; clothing use and combinations changed when civilians became soldiers.

For these standards I have divided the garments up into general categories.

UNDERWEAR

During this time period underwear was considered a shirt and drawers. As evidenced in photographs, the wearing of two shirts was common allowing the undershirt to keep the other shirt clean.(refer to shirt section below) Drawers were manufactured from muslin (a fine cotton, not modern "muslin"), flannel, knit fabric, and silk. Drawers buttoned at the waist and had a tie or buckle adjustment in the back. Generally reaching to the ankles, they occasionally had ties at the bottom of the legs.

SOCKS

Most commonly made of cotton or wool, although silk was sometimes used for formal wear. Socks were both hand and machine knitted. Machine knitted socks required hand finishing. Seams were on the back or the side and some socks had reinforced heels. Socks came in white, black and many drab colors.

SHIRTS

By the 1860's shirts, were developing a more tailored look. The square cut shirts were gradually losing popularity in preference for the better fitting and more stylish shaped shirt. Most had a placket front, drop shoulders, and came with or without collars. Button on cloth or paper collars were available and were popular. Dress shirts were made from fine linen; cotton also becoming more widely used. What we would call "good" shirts often had pleats and even decorative embroidery. Ordinary shirts were made from heavier cotton, wool, or wool flannel in white (very popular), drab solids (wool only), woven plaids, stripes, checks, and prints. White shirts worn with frock coats were standard business fare.

TROUSERS

Trousers should fit well enough to be worn without suspenders. Trousers were worn at the natural waist, which is approximately the height of the navel in a line with the elbows; trousers had fairly narrow waistbands and followed the shape of the waist, rising higher in the back. Eyelets and ties, straps and buckles, or straps and buttonholes were used for adjustment. Fly buttons were concealed. Legs were either lined and unlined and were generally straight, although some were tapered and some had a "spring." They should fit well enough to be worn without suspenders. They were baggy in the seat to allow for comfort while sitting. Some trousers had pleated fronts and creases are seen in about 10% of photographs(these are later in the period). Side seam or flap pockets are appropriate as is a watch pocket in the waistband, especially for formal wear. Materials used for trousers and coats varied according to the intended use and includes:

• Black superfine wool broadcloth was used for trousers worn with frock coats.
  
• Light to medium weight wool in plaids, checks, and solids in natural colors and various weaves.
  
• Reprocessed wool was produced during the war and mainly in dark colors sometimes with flecks of light colored thread.
  
• Natural and light colored cottons and linens in plaids, checks and natural color solids for wear in warm weather.
  
• Corduroy was used for casual, sporting and work clothes.
  
• Jean was used for work clothing.
  
• Cassimere and Satinette saw usage for both casual and work clothing.
  
  

SUSPENDERS

Suspenders were worn for show with proper fitting trousers but were a necessity for loose fitting ones. Most suspenders were simply two strap of leather, cloth, or knitted material with buttonholes at one end and either buttonholes, or straps and buckles for adjustment. Leather suspenders sometimes had decorative designs stitched into them and cloth types often had Berlin wool work. Elastic was used occasionally, but only on the last few inches of the suspender back. Some Berlin wool work suspenders had brass springs encased in thin leather as part of the back which functioned like elastic.

VEST

Common fabrics for vests were silk, linen, and wool. Silk was worn with any better coat. Vest matched either the trousers or coat or neither. Most vests were lined with white polished cotton. The backs were generally of brown, black, or white polished cotton. By the time of the 1860s vests were losing some of their flair, but they still remained the last vestige of color in menswear. There were various styles of collars with the shawl collar being most popular followed in popularity by the notched collar. Vest could have either two or three pockets, two pockets generally being earlier and three being later. They were adjusted near the waist in the back usually with a strap and buckle, but occasionally with a series of eyelets for lacing, some tailored vests had no means for adjustment and were cut straight across the bottom. Generally, single-breasted vests were worn with either a single or double-breasted coat, but a double-breasted vest was only to be worn with a double-breasted coat. Low cut vests are generally not from our period of interest.

NECKWEAR

As with vests, cravats and ties were not as colorful or as long as prior to the 1860's. They were generally about 2 ½ to 3 inches wide, although narrower tie widths appear in this decade. Wide cravats were generally worn with high collars and narrower ones with turned down collars (the prevalent 1860s style). Ties were tied in almost every way except the modern bow tie. Even the double Windsor knot of today appeared in the 1860s. Pre-tied cravats were available and fasted with spring steel, a tie, a buckle, or a button. The preferred material for ties was silk, but anything with a silky feel was used. Colors included black, white or anything contrasting or complimentary to the outfit. White ties were worn for formal wear. Ties were not generally worn with patterned ordinary shirts. Men, like women of the Victorian era, tried to minimize the amount of skin exposed and thus kept their shirt buttoned unless at strenuous labor.

COATS

Coats of this period varied from sack coats to frock coats. A seam at the waist characterized frock coats; thus morning and tailcoats are also considered frocks, albeit with a different skirt. Sack coats of varying length came into general usage in the early 1850's and were discernible by the lack of a waist or skirt seam. Unless a clear view of the whole coat is visible in period images, it can be difficult to discern whether a frock and sack coat is being worn. This is probably what has led to some confusion about features such as pockets and types of cloth used to make frock coats. Earlier sack coats have a more tapered body with sleeves like those used on frock coats. By the late 1850's, early 1860's, sacks are cut more fully and incorporate the balloon style sleeves.

Most common materials were wool of various weights, cotton and linens. Silk coats were known to exist. Superfine wool broadcloth used for clothing was so fine that the edges could be left raw. The fabric used in finer clothing was finished in such a way that it had a sheen. This can be seen in period photographs. The best clothing was black. Wool of tweed, check, or plaid patterns were used for sack suits, everyday paletots and sports and hunting clothing. Linings were made from cotton, silk, silesia, and alpaca. Frock coats generally had two pockets in the tails. Sack coats generally had pockets on the outside, with or without flaps. A paletot was a better fitting and longer sack coat and developed from the overcoat worn over a sack coat.

FOOTWEAR

The main feature of period shoes was a "squarish" toe and small heels. The most common material for working footwear was waxed calfskin that presented a rough outer finish, but a smooth interior. Goatskin in red or green was used as a trim for better boots of waxed calf and kid. An alternative to shoes or boots was the "Spring-sided Congress Gaiter," or the elastic sided shoe, which was introduced in the 1840s. The oxford shoe appeared in the 1850s. Patent (enameled) leather was used in dancing shoes for formal balls. Low boots were more popular than brogans for civilians.

OUTERWEAR

Irish knit, pullover or buttoned sweaters were worn for warmth rather than for fashion. Overcoats were a necessity in both cold and wet weather. Overcoats came with or without capes and many had capes that could be removed. The Frock Overcoat, which has the same lines as a frock coat, was apparently popular. These overcoats had outside pockets, which has given rise to the myth that frock coats proper had pockets. Rainwear included oilcloth and waterproof wool coats.

HEADGEAR

All sorts of hats and caps were popular. Fully constructed hats had a lining and/or a hatband, ribbon on the outside and a bound or sewn edge. Several types of hats were:

• Wool or fur felt, beaver or silk plush hats and several styles of straw.
• Watch and mechanics caps with a flat top and visor of the same fabric, tarred paper, or leather.
  
• Derby or bowler hats saw very limited use and "stove pipe" hats were crowding out top hats in all but formal wear.
  
• Proper hat etiquette was very important.