1920s Carss Mackinaw coat

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271352494287
This vintage coat was made by Carss Mackinaw, probably in the 1920s. This is a rare version. Most were made in striped point blanket material, with four patch pockets and a belted back. This one is made from a wool plaid. It has a squared off shawl collar, with patch breast pockets and handwarmers in a shape which would eventually inspire the D-Pocket found on motorcycle jackets. There are access flaps to an internal game pocket, and adjuster belts, mounted high on the back. The shoulders have pinked capes.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″ (doubled = 48″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 18-1/2″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24″
Length: 30″

A bit about the company, from a history piece I wrote for “The Fedora Lounge”: Carss Mackinaw made blanket coats in Orillia, Ontario from at least 1897. Their signature model was single breasted with caped shoulders and a squared-off shawl collar. They are most commonly seen in red, green, and khaki, all with a blanket stripe at the base. The fabric used in these coats was advertised as a whopping 44oz, and was sourced from a variety of trade blanket manufacturers, including Hudson’s Bay and the Bird Woolen Mills. They were advertised as “The Only Genuine Mackinaw Made In Canada”. They were retailed by the Hudson’s Bay Company, as well as other stores.

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Town and Country Sheeplined Coat

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281230598392
This vintage sheeplined coat was made in the 1930s under the Guiterman Bros. “Town and Country” label. The coat is made of green canvas, with a brown mouton shawl collar. As was common with coats of this style, it has loops instead of buttonholes. Usually these loops are made of corded material, but this one has higher quality leather loops. There are slash handwarmer pockets on the chest and flapped cargo pockets on the hips. The corners of the pockets have leather reinforcements. The coat is lined to the hip with sheepskin, and the sleeves have blanket linings and wool storm cuffs. The coat is belted.

A bit on the company’s history, from a piece I wrote for The Art of Vintage Leather Jackets / The Fedora Lounge: Guiterman Brothers was founded in 1883 and incorporated in 1904. They began using the Summit “Town & Country” name in 1904. In the early 1910s, Guiterman Brothers pioneered the attached soft collared shirt. They also called it the Summit. The company had a plant at 352 Silbey Street, St. Paul, MN, which still stands. They enjoyed prosperity during the 1910s, riding the Mackinaw boom of 1915. They were supposedly the first company to coin the name “windbreaker”. As shown above, their “Town and Country” Coats and vests shared the distinctive double snap Knit-Nek. During WWI, Guiterman Bros. produced flying coats for US aviators. In 1928-1929, the company was purchased by Gordon and Ferguson and continued production.

Chest (pit to pit): 22″ (doubled = 44″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 18″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25-1/2″
Length: 39″

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More from this company:

Carwood denim jacket

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281230576313
This vintage denim jacket was made by the Carwood Mfg Co. of Winder, Georgia, under their western “Bar C” label. It has a classic cowboy cut. It has a pleated front, open topped patch pockets mid-chest and a snap closure. The jacket carries over a vestige of the belt backs of 1930s and earlier denim jackets in the form of bar tacked pleats where the belt would have been. The jacket has copper dome rivets at the corners of the breast pockets and on the sleeves. The jacket is lined with a striped wool blanket for a bit of extra insulation. Other Carwood jackets of this era I’ve seen were made with selvedge denim, but the lining hides the location the selvedge usually was on this pattern.

Carwood was founded in 1923 and had a manufacturing plant located at 105 E Athens St., Winder, GA. They produced work clothes, twills and denims. They also produced under the “Demander” label. During the 1950s, they had endorsement deals with Rodeo stars for their “Bar C” line of western denims. The company closed in 1989 and the building is now home to the Winder Cultural Arts Center.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″ (doubled = 48″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 19-1/2″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25″
Length: 22″

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Canadian D-Pocket Motorcycle Jacket

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271351711041
This vintage leather jacket was made in Canada. It’s hard to say whether this was made by Brimaco or by Shields/Score Sportswear, as their patterns were so similar, and this one is missing the labels. Both manufacturers jackets were made as copies of the 1940s “Cycle Champ” jacket sold by Harley Davidson. While Harley retired the model, going with more of a Perfecto style, these Canadian manufacturers continued production with very little changes. It has a large patch D-pocket, with a smaller patch cigarette pocket. The other side of the jacket has a flapped square patch pocket. The ends of the pocket openings are all reinforced with domed bar studwork for that early motorcycle jacket flash. The back design, with kidney panel is more typical for the Score/Shields jackets, while Brimaco/British Cycle Leathers/British Sportswear jackets generally had three panels in a V shape. But you do see both designs coming from both makers, so it’s doesn’t clear it up that much. This has the smooth nylon lining more commonly seen on the cafe racers made by these companies, while the more old-fashioned plaid linings were generally put into the D-Pocket models. The main zip is a Lightning, the pocket zip is a Canadian Talon of the same design (same company).

Chest (pit to pit): 23″ (doubled = 46″)
Waist: 29″ (doubled = 36″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 26″
Length: 22″

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For reference, also see:

Lee TWA / Pratt & Whitney work jacket

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271349078220
This vintage work jacket was made by Lee, better known for its denim jackets and jeans. The jacket is a waist length style, and bears patches for Pratt & Whitney and for TWA (Trans World Airlines). It still has its original zip in quilted liner. The main zipper is a brass Talon. It has bi-swing shoulder, reinforced elbows, slash handwarmer pockets and adjuster tabs on the waistband.

Chest (pit to pit): 24-1/2″
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24-1/2″
Length: 24″

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1937 Albert Richard Hudson’s Bay point blanket coat

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271323676616
This vintage mackinaw coat was made around 1937 by Albert Richard. It is tailored from English made Hudson’s Bay Company point blankets. When this coat was made, a standard Albert Richard mackinaw coat, made in either solid colors or in plaids, sold for $12.50. An upgrade to this red and black Hudson’s Bay blanket fabric raised the price to a whopping $22.50. Period advertisements identify this model as “The Souix”. As with many belted coats, this one lost the belt years ago. One belt loop was removed, the other partially so. The coat has classic mackinaw styling- double breasted with handwarmer pockets on the chest, and flapped hip pockets. As with most early mackinaws, this coat is unlined, relying on high quality heavy wool blanket material for warmth. I wear this same model mackinaw from about a year earlier as my winter coat, and trust me, it will keep you warm all winter long.

Chest (pit to pit): 22″
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25″
Length: 30″

A bit about Albert Richard, from an article I wrote for “The Art of Vintage Leather Jackets”.
Fried-Ostermann was founded c.1902 as a glove manufacturer. They bought out their competitor, Price Gloves, and relocated production of that company’s products to their original factory, located at 617-645 Reed Street, Milwaukee, WI. By 1915, the company had gained a partner, and was known as the Fried, Ostermann, Meyer Co, but that looks to only have lasted until 1917. As the company grew, they relocated to 1645 S. 2nd Street, Milwaukee, WI. Fried-Ostermann diversified out of gloves and into outerwear in the late 1920s with the formation of a new division of the company, called Albert Richard. The leather jackets, mackinaws, overcoats and sportswear produced by Albert Richard would soon come to eclipse the glove-making side of the company. Pre-war advertising stressed health and sports, with endorsements from college football players. These ads also talk about bringing items of clothing which were previously thought of as workwear, like mackinaws and leather jackets, into the realm of ordinary streetwear, citing their comfort and durability.
During WWII, the Albert Richard factory made A-2 (contract AC 23383), M-422A (contract 1406A), M444A and M445A flight jackets under the name of their parent company, Fried-Ostermann. They advertised leather jackets, overcoats and sportswear heavily during WWII, giving their jackets model names like the “Spitfire” and the “Meteor”. During the war, the company gave away wall-sized posters showing a range of american military airplanes. 850 workers were employed by Albert r in 1946, with plans to hire another 400. The company was one of the first to use fiberglass insulation in coats, a technology borrowed from b-29 bombers. Sheepskin collared “storm coats” became a signature model after the war.
President of Fried-Ostermann, Richard Fried, sold their Albert Richard Division to the Drybak corporation of Binghampton, NY in late 1952. Drybak, a maker of canvas hunting clothing was looking to diversify their line. In the deal, they got the licensing, branding, patterns, dealership network, but other than the Vice President and designer for Albert Richard, all of the employees and equipment stayed at the plant in Milwaukee. Fried-Osterman re-focused the attention of their plant on the production of gloves, and on producing leather jackets under house labels for mail order and department stores.
Starting in 1953, under Drybak’s ownership, Albert Richard clothing was once again produced, this time under contract at a factory in New Jersey, which Drybak declined to name. The plan at that time was to have production moved to New York by 1954. Labels were changed in this period to read “Albert Richard by Drybak”. In 1955, Drybak acquired the Martin Mfg. Co. in Martin, TN. They closed their Binghamton operations in that same year and relocated their hunting clothing manufacturing and their Albert Richard division to the Tennessee plant to take advantage of the lower labor costs in the south.

 

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1946 Albert Richard blanket coat

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281208760052
This vintage wool jacket was made c. 1946 by Albert Richard. It is interlined with “Spun Sun” fiberglass insulation, pioneered by Albert Richard immediately after WWII. This model coat matches the button front surcoats sold immediately after WWII. This is the early style “Spun Sun” fabric, before the introduction of the (R) symbol in 1947. Albert Richard was sold and relocated in 1952, closing shortly thereafter. This coat has a three button front, a broad collar and two flapped hip pockets. While earlier coats by Albert Richard were made of Hudson’s Bay Company blanket fabric, with the advent of the miracle “Spun Sun” insulation, they could use lighter weight wools from other woolen mills to achieve the same level of warmth. This one has a three stripe pattern, with a broader central stripe.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″ (doubled = 48″)
Shoulder to shoulder: 19″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 24″
Length: 30″

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Mid 1940s Woolrich Mackinaw

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281204865336
This vintage Woolrich coat was made in the mid 1940s in Woolrich, Pennsylvania. After extensive research and collecting, I have put together a comprehensive guide to dating the labels and details of these coats. This style label, with a skinny sheep, was used in the later days of WWII through until about 1947. After 1947, the logo was changed with a new design of sheep, and to include the (R) symbol. Still produced today, this model of Woolrich mackinaw has changed very little since the turn of the last century, so details must be relied upon to give accurate dating. The label is the big one, definitively pinning it down to the mid 1940s. The jacket features the early style asymmetric breast pockets. Woolrich switched over to two large breast pockets in the 1960s. This coat has a rarely seen style of snap for this type of coat, a plain design made by United Carr, used during the war years, transitional between the pre-war “meander” style and the post-war ones branded with the Woolrich name.

The coat has a large, rounded collar with a buttoned throat latch. It has covered buttons save for the top. All the pockets have snaps. The vertical pockets on the front pass through to the internal game pouch, which can also be accessed from the rear. The coat has a full mustard colored lining.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″
Shoulder to shoulder: 20″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 25″
Length: 29″

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Mid 1930s Woolrich Mackinaw

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281204853617
This vintage Woolrich coat was made in the mid 1930s in Woolrich, Pennsylvania. After extensive research and collecting, I have put together a comprehensive guide to dating the labels and details of these coats. This style label, with a green border and the text “All Wool” was used briefly, from about 1935-1937. Still produced today, this model of Woolrich mackinaw has changed very little since the turn of the last century, so details must be relied upon to give accurate dating. The label is the big one, definitively pinning it down. The jacket features the early style asymmetric breast pockets. Woolrich switched over to two large breast pockets in the 1960s. The coat has the early style of United Carr snaps with a meander pattern on them. During WWII, Woolrich switched briefly to plain-topped ones, then to ones branded with their company name for the 1940s and 1950s.

The coat has a large, rounded collar with a buttoned throat latch. It has covered buttons save for the top. All the pockets have snaps. The vertical pockets on the front pass through to the internal game pouch, which can also be accessed from the rear. The coat has a full mustard colored lining.

Chest (pit to pit): 24″
Shoulder to shoulder: 20″
Sleeve (shoulder to cuff): 23″
Length: 29″

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Battered A-2

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281204190634
This vintage A-2 leather flight jacket was made during the 1940s. It has a spring-loaded zipper introduced in 1943 by Crown. This type, with “two-way” teeth, was designed exclusively for the military with larger versions finding their way onto the turrets of bombers to keep the wind out. Featuring this late-war military zipper, the jacket may have been private purchase. Snaps are of a ball style, and were made by Rau of Providence, Rhode Island, and have exposed backs. Pockets have nicely scalloped flaps, with the size tag stitched on the inside. The collar is long and pointed, and is attached directly to the body of the jacket The leather jacket hanger is off-center, stitched with “X” style stitching. The jacket has a khaki liner, which is in very good shape. Unfortunately, the original tag is long since missing.

Chest (pit to pit): 21″
Shoulder to shoulder: 17″
Sleeve (shoulder to end of knit cuff): 24-1/2″
Length (base of collar to end of knit cuff): 23″

Also see: https://vintagehaberdashers.com/2013/03/08/original-a2-leather-jacket/

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