Since the first t-shirts were handed out to sailors during the Spanish-American War, it has been a serious case of love at first sight. Lightweight, cool, comfortable, and cheap to produce: t-shirts have been part of American fashion almost as long as America has been, well...America.
The modern t-shirt as we know it didn't start out looking like it does today. The grandfather of the t-shirt was something called a "union suit". You may have heard of it as "long johns" or just "long drawers". These undergarments where used primarily as a thermal layer under the clothing to keep the air next to the skin warm with insulation. It wasn't until the late 1800's that people began separating the union suit into two pieces and wearing them as two different articles of clothes. This improvised undershirt became the father, or the precursor, to the modern t-shirt.
The first t-shirts had been designed strictly as underwear. No one was indecent enough in those days to wear such flimsy, thin fabric as a main article of clothing. That would have been indecent. Of course, there are always classes of people who don't care about "decency" as much as they care about "comfort". The working class began using the t-shirt as work clothing, which kept them cool and comfortable while they toiled at the docks, fields, and skyscrapers of America.
When the United States Naval Uniform Commission witnessed the level of comfort these manual laborers worked under, they knew that the Naval seamen would benefit from the same comfort. Of course, in the name of decency the t-shirt was issued as underwear...but a wink and a nod let them know that the t-shirt was there as a luxury.
When those seamen moved back into society, they took with them their new favorite garment. Once demand rose, manufacturers started producing white t-shirts for the general public...as underwear, of course. Time passed, and it became something of a rebellious gesture to wear this type of undergarment on the outside of your clothes. Once it became "cool", there was no stopping the spread of the t-shirt's popularity.
the American people love t-shirts, and that love has bled over to include the rest of the world. T-shirts can be bought in all manner of styles now, cheap or expensive. T-shirts with brand names used as a promotional tool to the common "band merch" used by musicians to get their name out. Funny, artful, or offensive...t-shirts are here to stay. America will never lose it's love for the t-shirt. The same cannot be said for corsets and hoop skirts.
The modern t-shirt as we know it didn't start out looking like it does today. The grandfather of the t-shirt was something called a "union suit". You may have heard of it as "long johns" or just "long drawers". These undergarments where used primarily as a thermal layer under the clothing to keep the air next to the skin warm with insulation. It wasn't until the late 1800's that people began separating the union suit into two pieces and wearing them as two different articles of clothes. This improvised undershirt became the father, or the precursor, to the modern t-shirt.
The first t-shirts had been designed strictly as underwear. No one was indecent enough in those days to wear such flimsy, thin fabric as a main article of clothing. That would have been indecent. Of course, there are always classes of people who don't care about "decency" as much as they care about "comfort". The working class began using the t-shirt as work clothing, which kept them cool and comfortable while they toiled at the docks, fields, and skyscrapers of America.
When the United States Naval Uniform Commission witnessed the level of comfort these manual laborers worked under, they knew that the Naval seamen would benefit from the same comfort. Of course, in the name of decency the t-shirt was issued as underwear...but a wink and a nod let them know that the t-shirt was there as a luxury.
When those seamen moved back into society, they took with them their new favorite garment. Once demand rose, manufacturers started producing white t-shirts for the general public...as underwear, of course. Time passed, and it became something of a rebellious gesture to wear this type of undergarment on the outside of your clothes. Once it became "cool", there was no stopping the spread of the t-shirt's popularity.
the American people love t-shirts, and that love has bled over to include the rest of the world. T-shirts can be bought in all manner of styles now, cheap or expensive. T-shirts with brand names used as a promotional tool to the common "band merch" used by musicians to get their name out. Funny, artful, or offensive...t-shirts are here to stay. America will never lose it's love for the t-shirt. The same cannot be said for corsets and hoop skirts.