106 American Traditional Tattoo Designs That Are Real Statement Pieces

With tattoo trends changing almost as often as the trends on social media, some tattoo styles still defy time, gaining immunity to any and all passing-by trends. Want to guess which tattoos we are talking about?

Yup, you’re absolutely right; it’s American traditional tattoos! To honor this never-dying trend, we’ve rounded up some of the most beautiful specimens done in recent days, and although these old-school tattoos did change during the period of their natural evolution, the core still stayed the same.

Traditional American tattoos, also known as old-school tattoos, are a distinctive style of tattooing that originated in the United States in the late 19th century, gaining their full-on popularity in the early to mid-20th century and keeping it to this day, too. These tattoos are characterized by their bold and icon-like designs, vibrant, often primary colors, and thick black outlines.

Now, these designs did not come out of nowhere and were heavily influenced by the maritime and military culture of the United States. Basically, it was the thing of all G.I. Joes and Marines.

Of course, most of these iconic tattoos were done by someone who couldn’t be called a full-fledged tattoo artist but rather someone with the apparatus and some basic ink. However, at the very same time, tattoo culture started forming, and in that time, two very prominent artists became well-known and helped tremendously in shaping the American tattoo style - Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins and Bert Grimm.

And yeah, although these old-school tattoo designs might not look exactly like their predecessors nowadays, this style is still very important in shaping tattoo culture. It has spawned several new tattoo styles, like neo-traditional and new school, which use the same iconic designs and bold outlines but add more depth and shadowing to the designs.

Overall, traditional tattoos played a huge role in shaping tattoo history, and the style is still as popular as it used to be. And if you were looking for something bold and timeless, this list might be just it!

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American Traditional Flower Arm Tattoo

American traditional flower arm tattoo

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106 American Traditional Tattoo Designs That Are Real Statement Pieces

American Traditional Flower Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Bird Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Half-Sleeve Tattoo

American Traditional Bird Tattoo

American Traditional Sparrow Shoulder Tattoo

American Traditional Heart Stabbed With A Knife Belly Tattoo

American Traditional Leg Sleeve Tattoo

American Traditional Eagle Tattoo

American Traditional Gilmore Girls Inspired Tattoo

American Traditional Peacock Leg Tattoo

American Traditional Film Roll Tattoo

American Traditional Froggie Reaper Tattoo

American Traditional Surrealistic Horse Shoulder Tattoo

American Traditional Rose Tattoo

American Traditional Eagle & Rose Belly Tattoo

American Traditional Butterfly Back Tattoo

American Traditional Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Heart And Rose Tattoo

American Traditional Woman Face Thigh Tattoo

American Traditional 'OK' Hand Gesture Tattoo

American Traditional Heart With Birds Tattoo

American Traditional Tattoos For Mom And Dad

American Traditional Skull Tattoo

American Traditional Ship Tattoo

American Traditional Heart Shoulder Tattoo

American Traditional Sun And Moon Chest Tattoo

American Traditional Lighthouse Tattoo

American Traditional Crying Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Moth Tattoo

American Traditional Lighthouse Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Sun, Cloud And Lighting Tattoo

American Traditional Toucan Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Stormy Eye Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Lighthouse Tattoo

American Traditional Birds Tattoo

American Traditional Dagger/Flower Combo Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Leg Tattoos

American Traditional Bat Tattoo

American Traditional Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Skull Leg Tattoo

American Traditional Tiger Tattoo

American Traditional Lighthouse Tattoo

American Traditional Ship Back Tattoo

American Traditional Master Sword Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Grim Reaper Tattoo

American Traditional Turtle And Flowers Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Panther Tattoo

American Traditional Eagle Ribs Tattoo

American Traditional Cobra Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Spider Web Tattoo

American Traditional Sweet And Sour Girlies Heart Leg Tattoos

American Traditional Monstera Tattoo

American Traditional Classic Dagger Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Under-Knee Flower Tattoo

Matching American Traditional Taylor Swift Tattoos

American Traditional Roses Tattoo

American Traditional Butterfly Tattoo

American Traditional Candy Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Cobra Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Sacred Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Fish Tattoo

American Traditional Eagle Chest Tattoo

American Traditional Woman Face Chest Tattoo

American Traditional Woman Face Leg Tattoo

American Traditional Skull Tattoo

American Traditional Chili Peppers Tattoo

American Traditional Dagger Tattoo

American Traditional Crying Heart Tattoo

American Traditional Ship Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Eagle Tattoo

American Traditional Ship Tattoo

American Traditional Dagger Tattoo

American Traditional Rose Tattoo

American Traditional Rose Tattoo

American Traditional "Don't Tread On Me" Adaptation Tattoo

American Traditional Skyrim Tattoo

American Traditional Clipper Ship Leg Tattoo

American Traditional Boxer Arm Tattoo

American Traditional Scorpion Tattoo