Oxford Bags

[Baron Kurtz]

Those look like something Old Town would put out. Good stuff.

bk

[Two Types]

Those 'Cleaverly Pants' look good, although at $95 in 1982, they weren't exactly cheap. The fullness around the seat certainly has an authentic look.

[herringbonekid]

found this picture yesterday which clearly shows another of the fluffy fabric 'bags' as seen in the Alan Flusser scan on page 14 of this thread.



these aren't very clear but several pairs also appear to be 'fuzzies':








i'm beginning to strongly suspect that this is what Oxford Bags were; a fuzzy warm trouser to wear on sports days, and that the much repeated tale of them being a trouser to pull over plus fours (in the classroom !) is basically urban myth.

[Two Types]

Very interesting. In particular the second picture, which appears to be much older than the rest. Also picture 3 is from 1930, by which time 'bags' were considered to be out of fashion. Thus, under this new hypothesis, the original Oxford Bags were from a much earlier time, and lasted longer, as a genuine sports trouser.

This is potentially a very good example of fashion history mythbusting.

I am sure there will be more to come.

[Two Types]

This link http://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/college/boa...s/WAL-Fletcher shows a couple of pictures of a famous Oxford University rower, 'Flea' Fletcher. Although Victorian and Edwardian trousers were typically narrow, he appears (in the illustration) to be wearing very loose white trousers. The 1860s photograph also shows the man on the right wearing very wide trousers, that appear flared (although this might just be the way he has crossed his legs).

This would fit in with HBK's theory that Oxford Bags derived from the traditional Oxford University sports trousers (not a trouser developed to cover plus-fours).

[herringbonekid]

he 1860s photograph also shows the man on the right wearing very wide trousers, that appear flared (although this might just be the way he has crossed his legs).

flared or not, they're very wide for a Victorian trouser. the date on the photo at the bottom is 1893... much earlier than the official Oxford Bag legend.
a red herring or the plot thickening ?

[Two Types]

Tonight I hope to post some photos of the Oxford University Water polo team in the late 19th century. There is a comparative photograph of the Cambridge team in the same year. Once again, the Oxford team are wearing trousers in a much fuller cut.

We shall have to sell the tv rights to this thread:

'The Fashion Detectives' coming to the History Channel very soon.

[Yeps]

'The Fashion Detectives' coming to the History Channel very soon.

That would never fly. Maybe if it was something like "Fashion Detectives: Aliens Among Us" they might run it.

[Two Types]

Back onto the origins of the 'Oxford bags'. Here is the Cambridge University waterpolo team from 1897:


And here is the Oxford team, the same year. Looking at the man sitting on then right, we can see that his trousers are far baggier than those worn in the Cambridge team:

I know this doesn't prove anything, but it does support the hypothesis that students in Oxford were wearing wider trousers than their contemporaries elsewhere long before the early 1920s.

[Two Types]

And here are a couple of mid-1920s cartoons about Oxford Bags:

What to do with your 'bags' when they go out of fashion (1925):


and: