The practice of putting young boys in dresses known as “breeching,” (spelled “ee”) continued from the mid-16th century right through the Victorian Era.
Boys remained “unbreached” in dress-like outfits until some time between age two and age eight. Apparently this little Portsmouth, NH guy figured it was time to move on to breaches, an important rite of passage for boys. In some families it may have indicated that the boy was mature enough to leave his mother’s care and become more involved with his father, en route to becoming a man. The dress may have been useful initially to avoid the cost of replacing clothes for growing children, or for toilet training. The dark clothing and double-buttoned front suggests that this is a boy who would soon move to shorts, and later to long pants.
We know very little about photographer Oliver H. Cook, who listed his studio as 5 Congress Street, probably on the third floor above Fay’s Store in Market Square. Other portraits by Cook, sometimes with the same background props, indicate he specialized in children. Unfortunately, the subjects in most Cook images I have seen are unidentified. This anonymous little victim is leaning against a draped stool or chair with a birch tree and painted background, with sand and a small rock at his feet. The light came from an open window and probably a skylight. In his advertising in the 1883 City Directory, Cook claimed “equally fine photos made in cloudy weather.”
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