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Knickers

1942 - 1952 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The earliest school uniforms were those of the charity schools, where they reminded the pupils of their dependence on the generosity of others. At non-charity schools, many of them founded in the nineteenth century, pupils usually had no uniforms, but wore their own clothes. From the late 19th century onward, such schools began to adopt complete uniforms in their own colours, often with a motto and school song, to give pupils a sense of school identity. Competition between schools at sport had popularised the wearing of identifying colours and garments by the teams, and many of the uniform garments were derived from sportswear, including gymslips, ties, scarves, caps and blazers.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Machine knitted stockinette, elastic
Brief description
Girl's school knickers of white stockinette; Cherub brand made under the 'Utility' scheme; UK, 1942-52
Physical description
GIrl's school uniform knickers of unbleached white machine-knit stockinette with a double gusset at the crotch, and elasticated waist and legs.
Dimensions
  • Centre back length: 29.9cm
Production typeMass produced
Credit line
Given by Susan Pittman
Object history
Worn by the donor, Susan Pittman née Mills, and marked with her name tape. Susan attended Hollington Park School for Young Ladies, a boarding school for girls in St Leonards on Sea.
(RF 88/1943)
Summary
The earliest school uniforms were those of the charity schools, where they reminded the pupils of their dependence on the generosity of others. At non-charity schools, many of them founded in the nineteenth century, pupils usually had no uniforms, but wore their own clothes. From the late 19th century onward, such schools began to adopt complete uniforms in their own colours, often with a motto and school song, to give pupils a sense of school identity. Competition between schools at sport had popularised the wearing of identifying colours and garments by the teams, and many of the uniform garments were derived from sportswear, including gymslips, ties, scarves, caps and blazers.
Collection
Accession number
MISC.1114-1991

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Record createdJuly 1, 2009
Record URL
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