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May 1943. "Boys who live in the Harlem area." Three fly guys. Medium format negative by Gordon Parks for the Office of War Information. View full size.
I wonder if maybe the dropping of the left sock was a fad of some sort?
I was in first grade at PS 125, on 123rd Street and Amsterdam Avenue, just 10 years after this was taken, and those lads could easily be interchanged with some of my classmates.
They wear knickers that have web cuffs instead of buckles. That's a revelation to me. And of course the socks any vintage clothing enthusiast would kill for. By the time I was in school knickers were very much a thing of the past. Two of these guys are wearing their rubbers. Very sensible of them.
And of course they may be a wee bit tattered, with socks dangling around their ankles, but they are sporting ties. How times have changed!
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