How Did Jeans Conquer the World?

    It was 1849, and Americans were dreaming of gold. A lucky man had found chunks of it sparkling in a California stream. Word was spreading fast.

    All across the country, people left their homes. Farmers dropped their plows in the fields. Preachers closed up their churches. Seamen deserted their ships. 

    In just a year, nearly 100,000 people traveled west with a single goal: Get rich quick! The gold rush was on.

    But the man who really struck it rich wasn’t a miner looking for gold. He was the man who made the miners’ pants.

    It was 1849. Americans were dreaming of gold. A lucky man had found some in a California stream. Word spread fast.

    All across the country, people left their homes. Nearly 100,000 people went west in one year. They had one goal: Get rich quick! The gold rush was on.

    But the man who really struck it rich wasn’t a miner looking for gold. He was the man who made the miners’ pants.

    It was 1849, and Americans were dreaming of gold. A lucky man had discovered chunks of it sparkling in a California stream, and word was spreading fast.

    All across the country, people left their homes. Farmers dropped their plows in the fields, preachers closed up their churches, and seamen deserted their ships. In just a year, nearly 100,000 people traveled west with a single goal: Get rich quick! The gold rush was on. 

    But the man who really struck it rich wasn’t a miner looking for gold. He was the man who made the miners’ pants.

    Levi Strauss grew up in Germany and arrived in San Francisco in 1853. He was 24 years old. He made money selling clothes and other goods to miners. 

    In 1873, Strauss got a letter from a tailor named Jacob Davis. Davis’s customers were miners. Their pants took a beating all day. The pockets wore out quickly. All their gold could be lost in a second. 

    Davis had an idea. He fastened the pockets with metal bolts known as rivets—and the pants were an instant hit. “I cannot make them up fast enough,” he told Strauss. But Davis needed a partner with money to really get the business going. 

    Strauss agreed right away. He made the pants out of a sturdy cotton called denim. He dyed them blue so they wouldn’t show the dirt. And pretty soon, workers all over the West were wearing Levi’s “waist overalls.”

    Levi Strauss grew up in Germany. He came to San Francisco in 1853.

    Strauss was 24 years old. He sold clothes and other goods to miners.

    In 1873, Strauss got a letter from a tailor named Jacob Davis. Davis’s customers were miners. Their pants took a beating. The pockets wore out fast. A miner’s gold could all be lost in a second. 

    Davis had an idea. He attached the pockets with metal bolts called rivets. The pants were a hit. “I cannot make them up fast enough,” he told Strauss. 

    To build the business, Davis needed a partner with money. Strauss agreed. He made the pants out of a sturdy cotton called denim. He dyed them blue so they wouldn’t show dirt. Soon, workers all over the West were wearing Levi’s “waist overalls.”

    Levi Strauss grew up in Germany and arrived in San Francisco in 1853, when he was 24 years old. He made money selling clothes and other goods to miners. 

    In 1873, Strauss received a letter from a tailor named Jacob Davis. Davis’s customers were miners, and their pants took a beating all day. The pockets wore out quickly, which meant that a miner’s gold could all be lost in a second. Davis had the ingenious idea of fastening the pockets with metal bolts known as rivets—and the pants were an instant hit. “I cannot make them up fast enough,” he told Strauss. 

    Davis needed a partner with money to really get the business going, and Strauss immediately agreed. He made the pants out of a durable cotton called denim and dyed them blue so they wouldn’t show the dirt. Pretty soon, workers all over the West were wearing Levi’s “waist overalls.”

    It took decades for Levi’s pants to make it to your closet. At first, they were seen only as work clothes. But in the 1930s, Western movies became popular. Suddenly cowboys were cool. And cowboys wore jeans—at least in the movies.

    In the 1950s, Hollywood gave jeans a bad reputation. Movies came out about motorcycle gangs and violence in schools. All the young troublemakers wore the same clothes: jeans and leather jackets. Before long, schools started banning denim pants.

    In the end, it didn’t matter. Teens liked wearing clothes their parents hated. In 1958, one article said that 90 percent of young people owned jeans. And they wore them almost everywhere. 

    Today, the average American owns seven pairs of jeans. And the company that started it all is doing pretty well. Levi’s sells nearly $5 billion worth of clothes a year. Now that’s a gold rush! 

    It took years for Levi’s pants to get to your closet. At first, people saw them only as work clothes. But in the 1930s, Western movies grew popular. Suddenly cowboys were cool. And cowboys wore jeans in the movies. 

    In the 1950s, jeans got a bad reputation. Movies came out about gangs and violence in schools. In these movies, troublemakers wore jeans and leather jackets. Schools banned jeans. 

    It didn’t matter. Teens liked wearing things their parents hated. A 1958 article said that 9 out of 10 young people had jeans. They wore them almost everywhere.

    Today, the average American owns seven pairs of jeans. The company that started it all is doing well. Levi’s sells nearly $5 billion worth of clothes a year. Now that’s a gold rush! 

    It took decades for Levi’s pants to make it to your closet. At first, they were regarded only as work clothes. But in the 1930s, Western movies became popular, and suddenly cowboys were cool. More important, cowboys wore jeans—at least in the movies. 

    In the 1950s, Hollywood gave jeans a bad reputation. When movies came out about motorcycle gangs and violence in schools, all the young troublemakers wore the same clothes: jeans and leather jackets. Before long, schools started banning denim pants. 

    Ultimately, it didn’t matter: Teens liked wearing clothes their parents hated. In 1958, one article said that 90 percent of young people owned jeans. And they wore them almost everywhere.

    Today, the average American owns seven pairs of jeans. And the company that started it all is doing pretty well: Levi’s sells nearly $5 billion worth of clothes a year. Now that’s a gold rush!