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History Of Levi Jeans For Men

By Ray Hauser


Levi jeans for men embody a classic American style with a commitment to quality and fashion recognized and imitated around the world. The jeans are made by Levi Strauss & Co, a privately held American company founded in 1853 by Levi Strauss.

In 1847, Strauss immigrated to New York from Germany and joined his two brothers in their wholesale dry goods business. He became a U.S. citizen in 1853 and eventually travelled to San Francisco where he found abundant opportunities in the California Gold Rush. He initially resided with his sister Fanny and her family and soon opened his own dry goods store called Levi Strauss & Co. He peddled boots, clothing, canvas, bedding and other products to general stores in the region that largely catered to miners.

Jacob Davis, a Latvian immigrant, worked as a tailor in Reno, Nevada. He regularly purchased material from Strauss. Legend has it that a laborer's wife asked Davis to make some sturdy pants for her husband. Davis began incorporating metal rivets at the corners of the pockets and the button fly.

In 1872, Davis contacted Strauss about his new process for making work pants stronger. He wanted to patent the product, but didn't have the money to file the application. Strauss agreed to fund the process and the two men would share the patent. In May 1873, U.S. patent 139121 for "Improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings" was granted to the two men opening the way for the production of modern Levi jeans.

Davis soon moved to San Francisco where he joined Strauss in the manufacture of their "waist overalls" later known as jeans. The pants were sold under the "XX" brand name since nine ounce XX blue denim was used in their production. Each pair had a watch pocket, cinch, crotch rivet, arcuate stitching and suspender buttons. The rivets all had the "LS&CO" logo embossed on them.

The Two Horse leather brand was sewed onto the pants in 1886 to demonstrate the strength of the clothing and reinforce Levi's image as the inventor of the rivet patent. Strauss began using the 501 trademark brand in 1890 just after the rivet patent expired. This came about because the trousers were listed in the catalog as number 501.

In 1922, belt loops were added to the overalls and the cinch was retained, but often removed by workmen who wanted to wear the pants with a belt. In 1927, ten ounce red selvage denim was used in making the 501's and Levi's waist overalls became a top selling brand. By 1928, "Levi's" was registered as a trademark.

By the 1950's a zippered version of the jeans appeared and was called 501Z. Teenagers began calling Levi's "jeans" during this era and by 1960 the word "jeans" replaced "overalls" in labels and advertising. Levi jeans continue to be a world recognized symbol of American culture, fashion and style.




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