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Education News from the National WWI Museum and Memorial

UNDERSTANDING THE GREAT WAR


Silk and Steel

Fashion’s Wartime Transformation

In only six years, war and pandemic altered the fabric of societies—and styles—forever. From 1914-1920, clothing rapidly evolved with gender roles and hygienic practices. The necessities of new actions and responsibilities, scarcity of materials, rampant disease, and ever-present societal morale needs spurred by modern warfare and illness affected not only what garments were worn, but how and by who they were worn.

This issue is published in conjunction with the exhibition Silk and Steel: French Fashion, Women and WWI sponsored by PNC Bank, which explores the transformation and legacy of fashion during the Great War.

Women wearing replica WWI Nurse uniforms, making a bed in a set made to look like a WWI-era hospital

Getting Dressed in WWI    

Crows Eye Productions

From soldiers in the Artists Rifles and nurses in the Voluntary Aid Detachment to working class suffragettes and young women, see who wore what—and why they wore it—in Great Britain during the Great War and the 1919 Flu Pandemic with these short videos by Crows Eye Productions. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: YouTube Video Series

1918 or 1919 Newspaper article with illustration of women's head wearing hat with veil, Text reads: Safety first, veil a flu preventative

Flu Meets Fashion    

Women's Wear Daily    

As public and personal hygiene adapted to slow the spread of influenza in 1918, so did clothing. From mask mandates to suit bans, learn more about the pandemic’s influence on fashion with this article and archived newspaper clippings from Women’s Wear Daily (WWD). | Recommended Grade Levels: 9‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Article, Primary Sources

A group of African American flappers: young women dressed in 1920s clothing including coats, gloves, close-fitting cloche hats and one in the foreground with a full light colored mink or fox stole. They are sitting on what appears to be bleachers in front of a larger crowd.

Women & The American Story

New-York Historical Society

A departure from years of isolationist policies, the U.S. entry into WWI signaled a change in the way Americans thought and felt about the rest of the world - a change reflected in their fashion. In these lessons created by the New-York Historical Society Museum and Library, learn about the rise of Madame C.J. Walker, the first self-made Black female millionaire in the United States who built her beauty empire during the war, as well as post-war consumerism and the popularization of flappers. | Recommended Grade Levels: 10‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Curriculum, Primary Source

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Fashioning Gender in Wartime France

Dr. Maude Bass-Krueger and Dr. Sophie Kurkdjian

World War I brought about significant and lasting cultural changes, including the way women dress. In this conversation with Dr. Maude Bass-Krueger and Dr. Sophie Kurkdjian, curators of the exhibition French Fashion, Women and the First World War, learn how women’s fashion not only responded to the realities of the conflict, but also reflected shifting societal attitudes surrounding gender and its connections to the war. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Video

When Paper Clothing Was the Perfect Fit

Smithsonian Magazine

A cheaper, light-weight alternative to wool and cotton—materials that were either scarce or too expensive to afford in countries ravaged by the war—paper quickly became a popular fabric for garments in the last and post-war years.

Learn more about this convenient cloth that could be cleaned with an eraser with this article by Smithsonian Magazine. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Article

Images of two early 20th century European dresses with clear Asian influence, such as silk brocade fabric, wide sash belts in the style of Japanese obi and low slung stiff collars at the nape of the neck, similar to women's kimono styles, alongside a close up image of a fabric stamp reading: silk made in Japan

Digital Archives

The Kyoto Costume Institute

The breadth of European imperialism—particularly of the British and French—stretched deep into Africa and Asia, introducing Western colonizers to a myriad of new textiles, patterns, and styles of dress. Examine the cross-cultural influence on European and Asian fashion during the wartime era with The Kyoto Costume Institute’s Digital Archive. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Primary Source

A collage of various elaborate early 20th century gowns on mannequins, with text above reading: Paul Poiret, 1879-1944

The King of Fashion: Paul Poiret

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Hailed as the defining clothing and costume designer of the 20th century, Paul Poiret is credited for creating “the blueprint of the modern fashion industry.” Explore his pieces and discover more on early haute couture with essays and artifacts featured in The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Online Exhibition, Primary Source

Silk, the Fabric of the Homefront

National Museum of American History

With wool and cotton supplies quickly dwindling from their use in military uniforms and supplies, silk production increased to become a common material in American closets. From “Khaki Kool” and the post-war silk surplus to the color dye shortage that ignited the achromatic trend, learn more about this versatile textile from the National Museum of American History. | Recommended Grade Levels: 11‑12, Adult Learners; Format: Articles

Some Effects of the World War on Cotton

University of Florida

Investigate the war’s impact on both the global and American cotton markets in this 1937 report by The United States Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Agricultural Economics, made available online from the University of Florida Digital Collections. | Recommended Grade Levels: Adult Learners; Format: Primary Source

The United States World War One Centennial Commission and the National WWI Museum and Memorial are dedicated to educating the public about the causes, events and consequences of World War I and we encourage the use of these resources to better understand the Great War and its enduring impact on the global community. 

Partners from around the world participate in the Educator Resource Database, some of whom are highlighted in this newsletter.