I don’t know who thought about taking pieces of cloth and silk to make a tie. They have been here and around the world for centuries. I suppose the manufacturers of making clothing knew that making ties would be a good investment and make a good profit selling them.
In today’s world, a more casual look is what people wear today. In earlier times to get dressed up in your best, a tie was always needed to make one look great.
Back in the day, Greenfield had several men’s clothing stores where you would always find racks of ties to look at and make a purchase. Some makers included a box for the tie to be given as a gift to a relative or friend.
At a very young age, my mother brought me and my brother, Edward, to a place where pictures were taken. I remember that my brother wore a bow tie. He started wearing bow ties then because he loved them and, throughout his lifetime of 92 years, he was called the man with the bow tie.
Working as a businessman for so many years, he was always so neatly dressed from his head to his feet. This, I think, was his way of expressing himself and his ties were all so beautiful to look at.
For me, personally, I wore regular ties for all formal occasions. I never saw my brother’s collections of bow ties, some of which were no-doubt ready-made, and others you had to tie yourself.
Today, ties are mostly worn by professional people like dentists, doctors and lawyers and other public servants.
So many of us, in these modern times, don’t wear one, and I think this is somewhat sad for society. You will always look better if you wear a regular tie or a bow tie.
Robert Bitzer, 93, of Erving is a lifelong resident of Franklin County, having been born in Greenfield. His columns are inspired by extensive photo albums and thorough collections of correspondence he has compiled over the years.