#TBT in the Archives 3/3/16: SU's Dress Code

From the 1940s to the 1970s, Shippensburg had a dress code for students. Though it was expected that all students dress up for dinner, the dress code for women was much stricter than the regulations placed on men's attire. The 4 photos below show the differences in women's dress from the 40s to the 70s.

Top row from left to right: 1941, 1957
Bottom row from left to right: 1961, 1976

During the 1940s, it was unsuitable for women to dress in shorts, playsuits, housecoats, and similar apparel outside of their rooms. Wearing slacks was also frowned upon on campus. Dresses for women or suits for men were required for dinner; sweaters were never allowed in the dining hall.

In this photo from 1944, women wear skirts past their knees as well as jackets and dress shirts.

In the 1950s, the university made the women's dress code even more restrictive. Shorts, slacks, and gym clothes were not acceptable on campus or downtown. Women were not allowed to walk the halls of their dorm without "proper clothing." Bathing suits were not to be worn in mixed company; the student handbook explicitly forbade sunbathing in the presence of the opposite sex.

The women in this photo from 1956 would not have been permitted to enter the
dining hall without first putting on proper shoes. Socks were not allowed!

The dress code was expanded in the 1960s. While Bermuda shorts and slacks were permitted in the dorm, women could never wear them in classrooms, the library, or in administrative or faculty offices. In 1970, the dress code was abolished by the Student Senate, but the student handbook continued to state that "women must be fully clothed in street attire when walking or lounging in the main lounge of each residence hall."

This memo from March 1970 announces the end of the university dress code.

For more information on the campus dress code, visit the exhibit, "Dressing Appropriately," currently on display on the lower level of Lehman Library. The exhibit will be on display until March 31st.  Created by Lydia Middaugh, University Archives & Special Collections Graduate Assistant, and Kira Piper, History Department Graduate Assistant, the exhibit highlights the evolution of the dress code over the course of four decades.

Want to learn more about Ship's history? No need to wait for the next Throwback Thursday! Contact Archives & Special Collections via e-mail: specialcollections@ship.edu or phone: 717-477-1516.