This week, thousands of American college students will descend upon beaches across the country, donning swim trunks and bikinis for what has become an annual tradition: spring break.
It’s no surprise that today’s swimwear is a far cry from styles of decades past, even if tankinis are making a comeback. UVA Today went to the University of Virginia’s Historic Clothing Collection to explore a century of swim fashion with the collection’s manager, Marcy Linton.
Early 20th-century swimsuits like this one cover as much of the wearer’s body as possible. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
This women’s swimsuit is from the early 1900s and made entirely of wool.
“You can see there are bloomers attached, and it would have been worn with black tights and little sandals so the wearer would have been as covered as possible,” said Linton, who is also an associate professor of costume technology. “Imagine wearing that and getting wet. It would have been so heavy.”
Linton said designers likely used wool for swimsuits because the material can keep someone warm even when wet, but it would have stretched and sagged under its own weight.
“Even this was a bit risqué, because you could see the shape of a woman’s calves through the tights,” she said.
A woman who wore this likely would have belonged at least to the upper middle class, Linton said. People from less prosperous backgrounds would have likely gone swimming au naturel and not in public.
The silk overskirt on this swimsuit makes it slightly lighter than previous garments. Rebecca L’Ecuyer donated it to the Historic Clothing Collection. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
Linton dated this sleeveless black swimsuit to the 1920s. It has a silk overdress with a wool base.
“This is lighter weight, but it’s still covering up a full set of bloomers. It’s a whole unitard with tights attached, so it would have been very difficult to get into.”
A bow cinches the swimsuit at the waist, but buttonholes at the back allow the garment to hang loosely and offer a little more modesty.
As modest as this swimsuit is by modern standards, someone who wore it in public would have been considered wildly inappropriate. Today, swimmers might throw on a cover-up or a T-shirt on their way to the pool or the beach. Instead, swimmers would travel in everyday clothes and change in a tent-like or caravan-style structure called a bathing house.
Men’s swimwear from this period, like this orange example, is far less modest than women’s. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
Men’s swimsuits were far less modest than women’s. This orange-and-blue Jensen swimsuit from the late 1920s was made of wool, like the others, but showed much more skin.
“What’s interesting to me is that this also has an overskirt to hide the shape,” Linton said.
Most men’s swimsuits from this era had a tank top to cover the chest, although they didn’t do much to disguise a man’s physique.
Competitive female swimmers are responsible for the streamlining of women’s swimwear. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
Over time, swimwear became more ornamental, as seen in this one-piece suit from the late 1930s or early 1940s.
“It’s still wool, it still has its skirt, but it’s getting more form-fitting. We’re getting a little more comfortable with the female figure,” Linton said.
The sudden advancement in women’s swimwear is thanks to female athletes. Professional women swimmers complained that their suits slowed them down in the water. The streamlined silhouette created less drag as they swam, though it’s still much more cumbersome than what modern competitive swimmers wear.
Swim fashion became increasingly ornamental, like this midcentury example. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
Wool swimsuits, like this powder-blue number, were still common through the late 1940s and early 1950s.
“It takes a long time before these wool skirts become something more of a novelty,” Linton said.
Though it still covers more of the body than contemporary swimwear, the swimsuit’s internal structure marks a move forward. It comes with built-in bra and underwear.
This is the most comfortable swimsuit of the six shown. By the late 1950s, designers began using cotton rather than wool for swimwear. (Photo by Lathan Goumas, University Communications)
The last dress in the lineup almost resembles a sundress. It’s even made of cotton, decorated with a machine-embroidered white spiral design, with pleated shorts rather than a skirt.
“You can see it’s becoming more decorative, so people are much happier to be seen in something like this. You might just go to your pool party in that and not change when you get there, as opposed to before,” Linton said.
Today’s spring breakers will likely wear more comfortable suits.
“It’s amazing how freely we dress today. A hundred years ago, people were almost totally covered up, and now people are wearing little to nothing,” Linton said.
