On May 20th, 1873, Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis secured a patent (No. 139,121) for “an Improvement in Fastening Pocket Openings.” The West Coast at that time was a loose patchwork of farms, ranches, railroads and gold mines. Jacob Davis—a tailor from Reno, Nevada—had the idea of placing rivets on work pants at points of strain, and joined forces with his denim supplier Levi Strauss in San Francisco. The riveted blue jean was born. Soon, Levi’s® became the clothing of choice for the rugged, hodgepodge band of workers, outcasts, entrepreneurs and outlaws building America’s future. For Spring/Summer 2023, in celebration of the 150th year anniversary of this patent, we pay tribute to their innovation and collaboration.

In 1901, the license plate made its debut, a famous trumpeter was born, a man crossed the Atlantic in a box and the fifth pocket was added to our 501® jeans. Our 501® jeans revolutionized the lives of workers. Today, we revived these jeans with this stitch-for-stitch reproduction of the 1901 501® jeans. Designed like overalls, they feature external suspender buttons for classic style and our signature straight leg.

• A stitch-for-stitch reproduction of a pair of archival 1901 501® jeans
• With two back pockets and exposed rivets
• The first year we added the fifth pocket
• Made from 9 oz. Cone Mills white oak plain selvedge denim
• Limited edition: Only 501 pairs were made