Retro Little Guys' Healthknit Union Suits 

 Union Suit Fans, thought you'd get a kick out of this Healthknit Thermal King packaging with little union suit wearing cartoon characters printed on it: police officer, army man, fireman, and train conductor...circa 1950's and early 1960's when union suits were still widely worn by lots of men!  Outdoor workers needed "Extra Warmth" thermal underwear.....before global warming.  Anyone remember seeing or purchasing union suits in this package?!  Fun!

As many of you know, if you've been viewing my postings over the years, my grandma took me shopping at Sears when I was a boy and bought me my first union suit. I wanted long underwear like cowboys wore. We found a "close out" sale of men's union suits for only $2.00 per suit. There were no little cartoon dudes on the package that I got. Rather, my package had a picture of a man in a union suit looking quite pleased. It would have been quite the treasure to have a package like these. That early union suit and the many I've purchased and worn since, with only two exceptions, have not been the waffle weave as the one pictured herein. Never-the-less, I would have loved to have one like this if only for the package!  

The second union suit I puchased myself and wore extensively was a red Healthknit 100% cotton union suit with white striping like the one pictured here.  Standard Knitting Mills of Knoxville, Tennessee manufactured both of the union suits in this posting and most of the union suits bought and worn by U.S. men and boys in the 20th Century.

  

The white thermal Union Suit packaging with tiny workers above was contributed by Union Suit Fan, Retro Jeff of Illinois