What is on his vest

[albrandon]

Re: What is on his vest

Just a thought, but I doubt that these button tabs were used for ill-fitted clothing due to the fact that, when a person of the era had his tintype, daguerrotype, ambrotype, etc. made, he tended to wear the very best of his clothing. I have seen only a few photos contrary to this rule, and I would argue that the majority of people would not wear clothing that they had outgrown for such occasions. Because there are so many button tabs apparent in period photos, I doubt that this would be a likely explanation. ;)

Amber L. Brandon

[sgt sidd]

Re: What is on his vest

I have an idea what it might be used for , it may be used to add a little color to the mans coat ,vest when he has on a plane shirt, like a white shirt. You could say a accent peace for the tie or what he has on. Robert S Lanier

[rick35ovi]

Re: What is on his vest

This image just came up for sale with another one of those funny things!

http://www.shopgoodwill.com/viewitem.asp?ItemID=3020281

[sgt sidd]

Re: What is on his vest

Hello again , The idea of cloths fitting tight is right for some, but those that worked back then, like carpenters, and others of the working class they had loose fitting cloths, why with a fitted coat and pants and such, you can not do the job at hand , too much bending and such. The ones with fitted cloths are the ones with money so the more money the more fitted cloths you have, which means they do not do that much of the physical jobs as the others. Cloths coast money today as back then, so they are going to make them last as long as they can. They also went with fashion . Thank you Robert S Lanier

[Watchdog]

Re: What is on his vest

I believe that it is called a tibi--a fastening device seen on men's coats and vests.

[billwatson]

Re: What is on his vest

Pat Craddock may be able to shed practical, hands-on light on this, but the thought crossed my mind that what the device may actually be doing is providing a correct spacing between the edges of the collar for a cravat or necktie to 'seat' properly, and providing a support or foundation to give the necktie the correct vertical position. Sometimes the collar ends on those stand-up collars come so close when the coat is buttoned that they make the necktie look like it is outside the coat rather than on the shirt, if you can picture what I mean. This would cure that. Kind of like the metal backing on those bowties we used to have to wear when I was a kid, the kind that clip to your shirt rather than going around the neck. Same function: Makes the tie ride properly.

Just a thought. I wear neckties in the modern world only to the funerals of high school classmates and have worn an 1860s neckwear arrangement only twice. Hate them all.

[Professor Barclay]

Re: What is on his vest

This reminds me of something I've seen before. I've seen a small chain on clothing items that were meant to be open, but could possibly swing open more than desired. I noticed that it seems that most of these are clothes that could be buttoned, but weren't.

Just an observation...

Rick

[Matthew Semple]

Re: What is on his vest

I have also been wondering for the past few years what this fabric button closure device is called.

I have seen one other period photograph that shows a vest with it. The gentleman was wearing the vest open with the button closure device fastened to a button on either side just below the collar.

Attached is an image of one of these fabric button closure devices from my collection. I acquired it about six years ago. It came in the pocket of a United States Navy Captain's Bridge Officer's Coat (circa 1890s). This piece is not of the same vintage as the coat and is much older. The fabric is a finely woven blue wool broadcloth with a cotton interlining. It is entirely hand sewn with a bluish-brown 2 ply cotton thread (whereas the Bridge Officer's Coat is entirely machine sewn with a black 3 ply cotton thread).

I am reattaching the image that was originally lost in this post.

[Palmyra Possum]

Re: What is on his vest

I going to reopen an older thread. As I’m sure many of you know, the Lincoln Library has a wonderful collection of pictures of Illinois soldiers. So far, those of the 4th Illinois Cavalry and the 7th, 9th, 17th, 33rd, 37th, 56th, 64th, 77th, 86th and 108th Illinois Infantry Regiments have been posted online, with both front and back scans. (I was also able to get thumbnails of another regiment by emailing them.)

http://www.illinois.gov/alplm/library/programs/boysinblue/Pages/BoysInBlueImages.aspx

Their collection on the 4th Illinois Cavalry contains about 65 pictures. What is interesting is that over 30 of them contain the following printing on the back.

Hughes & Lakin
Photographers
NATCHEZ,
Miss.

The 4th arrived in Natchez in December of 1863 and remained there for most of 1864, making it a good collection of mid/late war soldiers.

Two of the soldiers in the Natchez pictures have this little gizmo on their vests. The one on the vests of John Moore is clearly visible. That on the vest of Cyrus Smith is not in use and is hanging loose on the front of the vest. Another photo of Edward Simpson, taken in Memphis (probably late 62/early 63), also shows this tab. The printing on the back of this one says:

H. A. Balch’s
STAR
Photography Gallery
221 Main Street,
Memphis, Tenn.

[LeftCoastYank]

Re: What is on his vest

Similar tab attachments, sometimes seen on the collars of work shirts from the early part of the 20th century, are referred to as "chinstrap" collars. Pre-WWI and through WWII era U.S. Navy pea coats also have a similar cloth tab that allows the collar to be (a) buttoned down (so as to keep the wind from blowing it up) or (b) to be buttoned upright, creating a nice windbreak for the neck.