Page "Union suit" Paragraph 1

A union suit is a type of one-piece long underwear.

Created in Utica, New York, United States, it originated as women's wear during the 19th-century United States clothing reform efforts, as an alternative to constricting garments, and soon gained popularity among men as well.

The first union suit was patented in 1868 as " emancipation union under flannel ".

Traditionally made of red flannel with long arms and long legs, it buttoned up the front and had a button-up flap in the rear covering the buttocks ( colloquially known as the " access hatch ", " drop seat ", " fireman's flap ", and other names ), allowing the wearer to eliminate bodily waste without removing the garment.

Depending on the size, some union suits can have a dozen buttons on the front to be fastened through buttonholes from the neck down to the groin area.