Remember When: Back-to-School Fashions: Then and Now

Whether the start of school fills you with great excitement and anticipation or with a profound sense of dread, the new school year is nearly upon us. And with the approach of school comes the inevitable shopping trips for new school clothing. Store circulars have been pouring into our home, stuffed into the daily newspapers, so it would be difficult not to see what is being touted at the “must-haves” for today’s school kids. (Lucky for me, my two kids wear uniforms to school.)

The rock star/hippie look that is being promoted for young people this year, sits in stark contrast to the fashions for young people that appeared in this Sears catalog from 1957. Take for example, the “sharp” sweaters, shirts and ties being suggested for young men in that year. Unless they’re off to an exclusive prep school, the boys you know today are probably not going to be sporting a tie or one of these snazzy sweaters. As Kevin in the movie, “Home Alone” stated, “You can get beat up for wearing something like that”.

All kidding aside, and as a mother myself, I like the way kids used to dress for school, and am sometimes horrified by what I see some kids wearing (or almost NOT wearing). I attended elementary school in the 1960s, and I remember going to public school in a dress everyday. We were not allowed to wear slacks, except for gym day. And even then, they were slacks—no jeans were allowed in school. Sneakers were only worn during gym class. Proper clothing was about conformity then, rather than used as a means to express oneself. By the time I was a teen in the 70s and school dress codes were relaxed, I was in a uniform myself. So my time for self-expression was limited to afterschool hours.

In addition to what is considered to be fashionable, prices are another thing that has changed drastically over the years. In 1957 the price for a boys long-sleeved polo shirt was $1.85 and a girls pullover sweater and mitten set was just $2.83. Of course, the average salary was proportionally lower in the late 50s, too.

Note the haircuts for the girls and boys in these photos as well. The boys’ cuts are reflective of the cuts popular among men in the late 1950s—very short on the sides and back and a little longer on top. The girls’ styles are sweet medium-length cuts. They’re all neat, clean-cut styles that contrast sharply with today’s “emo” and “punk” styles.

As always, it’s interesting to look back and see where we’ve been. We hope you enjoy these pictures and welcome any comments you may have.