Baseball uniform
The stocking colors of teams helped viewers tell one team from another.  Stockings in 1900 were made of one long piece of heavy wool. They were full-length (above the knee).  The foot covering part below the ankle bone was colored white or natural wool.  It often created the illusion of stirrups.  In 1868, the Cincinnati Red Stockings started to play in short trousers so their stockings could be seen.  This led to the team's nickname.  Teams started to be called the Chicago White Stockings or the St. Louis Brown Stockings because of what colored stockings they wore at the time. Some teams wore "candy cane" stockings instead of stripes during the 1920s; these included the Giants, St. Louis Cardinals and Washington Senators.