Hi i can remember gentleman like this, they would have had shirts with separate collars, perhaps you have heard of collar studs? An attached collar does not look right on its own hence the tie. They would have just one suit and would wear the jacket with 'flannels' on Saturdays. A few would have a 'Sports jacket'.
Often to go round to the pub in the evening the collar would be removed and they would wear a white scarf to hide the top of the shirt. Shirts would have studs in the cuffs and when these got threadbare the cuff would be 'turned'.
Most wore hats and that was to keep warm, protection from the sun was a knotted handkerchief.
If you look at the old B & W films when someone was packing to go away it was with a very small case.
One of my jobs at my grandparents was to change the gas mantles. These were white half globes that the gas went through and was then lit for lighting.
Every Saturday morning would see me take the 2 volt accumulator to the cycle shop for charging. I would collect another charged one from the common pool of accumulators. I think it cost a shilling, possibly refecting that the cells did not last forever, but a shilling a week got you a charged battery. The cells went into the DC mains powered radio for heating the valves.
A lot of homes on trolleybus routes had 200 volts DC in their mains sockets, quite dangerous in its own way with just a 2 pin connection. If you bought a radio you might also ask if it was AC/DC? the mains that you had was then plugged into the right connection.
So if you ever wondered where the expression AC/DC came from? Now you know.
regards
Roy
