My group is doing a brief history of fashion at JMU as a way of understanding the culture of the school through the decades. This 1914 image taken from JMU Special Collections, depicts a group of State Normal School students in their normal everyday attire. The collection is Students- General Life #1 within the Historic Photographs collection. The entire collection consists of photographs from the 1910s that could be used in comparison to other decades.
In order to understand the extent that fashion defines an era, one needs to understand the historical background and compare this with fashions of differing eras.
The early 20th century was a traditional, Christian, conservative, and patriarchal society. The fact that the State Normal School to educate girls even happened is remarkable. In order to justify to both the state of Virginia and parents of future students that the school was worth it, there needed to be protections and rules for the girls. The school’s goal was not just to educate the future teachers of the state, but to produce respectable southern women. This extended into the clothing the students would wear
All the girls are in white, except one who may be a dormitory matron or someone in authority. White is also a difficult color to maintain, the slightest bit of dirt is very noticeable, and the color will naturally fade over time. White clothing was for a long time the clothing of the wealthy, a sign of having the money to sustain it. By requiring the girls to wear a color shows how the school wanted to show case their class. White is also a symbol of purity, an expression of being unblemished. By wearing all white the students would be projecting their purity and dignity and therefore the dignity of the school. There was also a large Christian overtone to the School, as there was with most public spaces at the time, which may have added to the conservatism of fashion. All the girls are in full length dresses, with their hair in a bun. The only color in the sea of white are neck ties and bows, and only two of the girls are seen wearing these. It is hard to know the exact color from a black and white photo, but they look black. Other than that, the girls all dress largely the same. From the shoes that are visible, they appear to be black boots or short heels.
When comparing the clothing in this image to the fashion of the 70s the differences between the societies become clear. An artifact such as a yearbook from the 70s shows female students wearing pants and colors other than white. The school also became co-ed in the late 60s, creating a different school environment and an insight into the world through male fashion. The 70s was a time of looser social constraints on youth and the fashion demonstrates this. Over the years the school’s culture transitioned from a strictly conservative all girls-school to a co-ed less strict college. This transition can be observed by looking at the progression of fashion.
Control #: Stge103, JMU Historic Photos Online, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.
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