Partial uniform?

[toot]

Welcome.

 

[6yanks+2rebs=1me]

Hello all, I've been lurking here for awhile and finally decided to join. I collect antique photos and picked this one up a few months ago. Are the mans striped pants part of a uniform or just fancy dress for the period?

View attachment 386860

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[Nathan Stuart]

Unlikely that only partial military uniform attire, like striped military trousers, would have been worn in a clearly civilian social gathering like in this photograph. In my view, it would not have been correct etiquette at the time (a full dress uniform would be okay though).

More likely that the striped trousers were part of a socially worn black tie suit (or possibly even a tuxedo). This type of dressware originated around the time of the Civil War.