The History of the Middy

In honor of my mom Middy Dunn, here's a history of the middy blouse. She used the middy blouse to explain her name when people got that puzzled look in their eyes when she introduced herself. Thanks to Fuzzylizzie Vintage Clothing for their great Middy Blouse roundup.

The wearing of sailor suits by anyone besides an actual sailor probably originated with young Prince Edward in the mid 19th century. He later had his own children dressed in miniature sailor uniforms.  A photograph of the children inspired a trend of dressing small boys in sailor suits - a trend that lasted well into the 20th century.  This illustration is from a 1908 catalog.



Sometime around 1910 the sailor blouse was developed into a true middy.  The middy did not "blouse" over the waist; it hung straight from the shoulders to the hips.  1916 Chicago Mail Order ad. (right)

By 1922, middies were not just for active sports.  They had crossed over into being a fashion item as well.  Dresses with middy tops became popular for spectator sports.  1922 Butterick Pattern Book. (below)

Here's another Middy fashion. I can just see my mother wearing this even though it was a little before her time. That's the beauty of the Middy--it's timeless. (right)

By 1929, the middy was pretty much back in its old position of being active sportswear.

Whereas in 1922 Montgomery Ward had a full page of middies, in 1929, there was just this one middy offered, and it was in the sports section instead of the clothing.

The Middy, however, continues and comes back in 1930 (Mom's birth year) and continued on through WWII and even to the 50s. Here are some sewing patterns that show the various middys through the years. I think we probably had the one from the 50's.

 Mildred ("Middy") Coffee Dunn
  March 13, 1930-February 12, 2003.