The Jean Jacket: A Complete American History (Type I, II & III)
The jean jacket might be the most democratic garment America ever produced. A railroad worker and a rock star can wear the same one and both look exactly right. But behind that easy familiarity is a precise, century-and-a-half evolution, from a riveted work blouse to the Type III Trucker that the entire world now copies. I spent years and a lot of failed samples chasing my own version, so here's the whole story.
The first denim jacket (around 1880)
About a decade after riveting its work pants, Levi Strauss & Co. made the first riveted denim work jacket in the United States, around 1880, known as the Triple Pleat Blouse. It was short and boxy, with riveted pockets and cuffs, three pleats down the front, and a cinch at the back. It was pure workwear, made for the same miners, cowboys, and laborers who wore the overalls.
Type I (506XX): 1905 to 1953
The first jacket of the modern lineage was the 506XX, introduced in 1905 and known today as the Type I. Boxy fit, a single chest pocket, front pleats, and a buckle cinch at the back. It was called a "blouse" until the word "jacket" first appeared in Levi's 1938 Dude Ranch Duds catalog, and it earned the nickname "Number One" (hence Type I) as far back as 1917. Pocket flaps came and went, removed during World War II to save material. Its run lasted nearly 48 years, the longest of any.
Type II (507XX): 1953 to 1961
The 507XX, or Type II, arrived in 1953. It added a second chest pocket, swapped rivets for bar tacks at the pockets, and replaced the back cinch with buttoned waist adjusters. This was the jacket of the early rock-and-roll era, worn by the likes of Elvis, and its appeal stretched well beyond the United States. It had a short life, only about nine years.
Type III (557 / the Trucker): 1961 to today
In 1961 came the jacket that conquered the world: the 557, or Type III, sketched on a notepad by Levi's designer Jack Lucier (whose father, Chris Lucier, created the famous red Tab). It was slimmer, with the now-iconic V-shaped front seams and pointed pocket flaps, and crucially, the rivets were gone. In 1967 it was renumbered Lot 70505 to match the new 505 jean, and earned the nickname that stuck: the Trucker. It remains the global standard for denim jackets.
Why Japan named them
Here's a twist most people don't know: the now-universal terms "Trucker" and the Type I / II / III classification system were coined by Japanese vintage collectors in the 1980s, whose obsession with old Levi's outpaced even the brand's own record-keeping. Japan didn't just preserve American denim, it catalogued and canonized it, and today Okayama's makers reproduce these jackets better than almost anyone. That's a big part of why I make mine there.
My jean jacket
I make my jean jacket where the craft now runs deepest. My ONE Jean Jacket is built from 13.5oz shuttle-loom selvedge denim, woven specially for me in Okayama, Japan, triple-needle stitched throughout, with a Horween horsehide rough-out patch and a YKK donut button, designed in the USA and cut and sewn in Japan. There's even a Winter ONE lined in sherpa and Japanese diamond quilting. I made it to carry a 145-year lineage forward, and to be worn for decades and handed down. See it in my factory store.
What I was after
The trucker is a perfect object, every detail is there for a reason. My job wasn't to reinvent it. It was to honor it and build it to the highest standard on earth, with the best denim, in the place that takes denim most seriously. Then you wear it for ten years and watch it become yours. That's the whole point, and it never stops being worth it to me.
Frequently asked questions
When was the jean jacket invented?
Levi Strauss & Co. made the first riveted denim work jacket in the U.S. around 1880 (the Triple Pleat Blouse). The modern lineage began with the 506XX "Type I" in 1905.
What's the difference between Type I, II, and III?
Type I (506XX, 1905-1953) has one chest pocket and a cinch back. Type II (507XX, 1953-1961) added a second pocket and waist adjusters. Type III (557 / Trucker, 1961-present) is slimmer with V-shaped seams, pointed pocket flaps, and no rivets, and is the jacket the world copies today.