Basic personal possessions of the 1930's American male

[Seb Lucas]

Slightly off topic: In England they had more formal requirements than in America. In Australia the middle and upper classes tended to copy the English.

My Father who came from Europe is 90. He was working class. He tells me that the average man in the 1930-40's had the following.

Stuff:
A cut throat razor (kept at the barber. One or two shaves a week.)

A wrist watch

A pocket knife

A lighter

The above items were often passed on from father to son.

Clothing:

A good suit (for church and interviews)

An older "worn in" suit

An overcoat

A pair of casual trousers

A pair of bathers

4-5 shirts (mostly white/grey)

7 sets of underwear

7 socks (often hand knitted by mother)

2 ties

2-3 pairs of shoes

1 or two fedoras and a cap

Clothing was washed once a week and a shirt could be worn 2 to 3 days

It wasn't until the 1950's were well and truly underway that working people started to experiment a little with colour and nylons.

One issue that is significant I think is the high quality of some things like cotton shirts and the wool used for suits. You could get 15 years out of a suit which today would be raggedy in less than half that. You could get away with less stuff.

 

[filfoster]

In the interests of gross oversimplification, I propose the following.

1930s

The closet photo above is telling.
Our first house was built in 1934; closets obviously built for very limited wardrobe-about 2 1/2 feet deep and only four feet wide. One shelf. Good 'circumstantial evidence'?

 

[SGT Rocket]

I keep a "weekend bag" packed at all times. My criteria when setting it up was to imagine myself taking a train trip in the late 1930's - what might I need? While my project was not to try to duplicate anything in an historical sense, but to imagine myself traveling under similar conditions, it might be helpful. Here is what I ended up with:

The bag.

The contents:

Some things that might not be obvious:

That is a GREAT bag Col! What brand it is? I've been looking for something like that for quite some time!!!!
Thanks!!!!

 

[Benzadmiral]

. . . Built in cabinetry is a modern convention and contrivance. The absence of cabinetry in an older house does not necessarily imply a paucity of material possessions.

True. In older -- 18th and 19th century -- New Orleans houses, there are very few built-in closets, for an economic reason. The local tax man considered closets to be "rooms," and therefore taxable, i.e., a four-room house would be assessed a higher tax than a three-room. So people tended to build their houses without closets, and stored their "stuff" in wardrobes and cabinets.

 

[Fifty150]

I don't know about the '30's & '40's. I wasn't alive back then. But I can tell how easy it is for me travel today for business today with just a carry on.

Toothbrush, toothpaste, razor, shave cream, deodorant, comb, & hair gel. I will wear my suit with a casual shirt. Usually a silk shirt that I can wear without a tie and go out to a nightclub in. Black suits can easily transition from work to party time. Pack a couple of clean folded dress shirts, a tie, and extra underwear. If there is a need, I'll also throw in a tank top, swim shorts, and flip flops. I'll already be wearing my shoes, hat, watch, cufflinks, and secret decoder ring.

If I don't need a suit, it is even simpler. I can go for a week with just a gym bag.

 

[Edward]

It's been years since I travelled with carry-on luggage only.... certainly pre 9/11. Since then, I've been obliged to put a bag in the hold whatever the size, for the simple reason that I typically want to shave when I'm aware overnight. I suppose I could grow a beard or use an electric "razor", but neither of those appeal (and, given how ineffectual electric razors are on me, they're not that different from each other either).

 

[Fifty150]

I bring a razor, but leave the blades at home. I simply buy blades where I'm visiting, then leave them there since i can't bring them on the plane going back home.

 

[Colonel]

That is a GREAT bag Col! What brand it is? I've been looking for something like that for quite some time!!!!
Thanks!!!!

The bag is from Duluth Trading Company and is called the "AWOL Bag". I've had it for a number of years now, and I am extremely well pleased with it. It shows the wear very gracefully. Scratches and scuffs show that it has had a good bit of use, but nothing that affects the strength or utility of it. If I lost it today, I would order another one tomorrow.

I'm confident that you will be pleased with it as well, sir.

 

[Edward]

I bring a razor, but leave the blades at home. I simply buy blades where I'm visiting, then leave them there since i can't bring them on the plane going back home.

That would be the way round it, yes... bit of a pain, though, if you're on an overnight business trip - not always convenient to go shopping for blades. That's one way flying has become tiresome. Airlines appear not to share my opinion that a plane which can be hijacked with a single razor blade deserves to be! lol

 

[Michael Tincher]

@Don: maybe people weren't bringing more stuff, during the 30's car and road technolgy went a long way and cross country, or at least long trips, were more feasible than they had been with Model A/T type cars (as well as with more areas now being open to travel).

The truth was, and still is, that in Europe, much more so, obviously than here in the US, long distance travel was via trains, as you could and still can travel from London to Beijing via train if you can afford it. Or, transcontinental Steamer Ships. Wealthier people would carry nearly their full wardrobe in "Steamer Trunks", (Sort of like an Amoire with drawers in a leather trimmed wood trunk). People of lesser means might only carry a single suitcase or overnight bag via those same means of long distance transport. So their wardrobes were very simple. People who could not afford to travel more than a day to see family would often travel by train as it was cheaper and more accessible than owning a car. Now, that being said, if we're talking the 1930s, just after the stock market crash that led up to the nearly global depression, and if a car was owned outright before those hard times. It is highly possible the cost of fuel was so expensive that the car simply sat where it was, and they still took the train. My grandfather, born in 1899 used to tell me stories of his youth of those days. My own father was born in 1929, and he simply grew up with flour sack cloth shirts made by my grandmother. The flour sacks came from the "Packaging" that flour was sold in because people themselves were not buying material for themselves during that time and the wheat flour producers found the savings on such material a lifesaver for business during that time. I was born in 1954 in Germany, just 9 years after the end of WW-II, The German family that took care of me while my parents worked, (thank god they were both professionals), had armoires (wooden cabinets used for storing clothing like closets today). She had two dresses, 2 blouses, one skirt, one cardigan sweater and a coat, hat, gloves and scarf. He had one three-piece suit, (which he seemed to always wear), one sport coat, two pair of pants, one cardigan sweater, a hat, coat, gloves, and a scarf. Between them that owned one umbrella. Other than undergarments and shoes and socks. That was all they had. Even their kitchen was nearly bare with mixed and matched plates, bowls and cups. Probably scrounged from the wreckage that still existed during my youth.

 

[Michael Tincher]

Was looking to buy a house in downtown a few months back built in 1926. It had some nice features like a Master bedroom suite with lounge, sleeping porch and changing room. The closets were built with Shoe racks below and shelves for hat boxes and very small with no bar for hanging clothes. I always assumed they just hung their suits in free standing wardrobes. I would guess most men had 2-4 suits and just augmented them with socks, kerchefs, ties and shirts. I can also understand the "wear your clothes" mentality when traveling. I do that myself to help lighten the weight on my duffel bag when I go to Alaska every year.

Obviously a home built for a wealthier clientele.

 

[Michael Tincher]

That would be the way round it, yes... bit of a pain, though, if you're on an overnight business trip - not always convenient to go shopping for blades. That's one way flying has become tiresome. Airlines appear not to share my opinion that a plane which can be hijacked with a single razor blade deserves to be! lol

To expect safety in life is to invite unsafe activity, and to demand safety one must understand that they willingly have to give up liberty.

 

[GHT]

The truth was, and still is, that in Europe, much more so, obviously than here in the US, long distance travel was via trains, as you could and still can travel from London to Beijing via train if you can afford it.

Paris to Istanbul, twin cabin £17K Grand suite: £61K.
In the UK the Orient Express is on the British Pullman from London to Calais (France.)

From there passengers transfer to The Orient Express:

My wife and I have done the day trip from London to Paris., the UK leg of the journey being steam hauled.

 

[Tiki Tom]

^^^^
Sounds like a dream trip. A way to step back, if only for a short time, to a very different age. I love train travel.

 

[GHT]

^^^^
Sounds like a dream trip. A way to step back, if only for a short time, to a very different age. I love train travel.

It was, I surprised the lady on a wedding anniversary. Dressed as we were, we were probably photographed almost as much as that steam engine. It really was a wonderful day.