Objects of Substance- School Hat

The change in fashion in the 1960s and 1970s saw changes in the girls’ uniform. Head Mistress at the time, Miss Nancy Shaw, later commented in her 1991 recollections that the School had, during this time ‘some of the most gifted girls I have ever been privileged to know, and they were ringleaders in demanding all sorts of changes.’ Girls demanded, along with the abandonment of stockings in summer, and wearing of navy gloves altogether, a new style of hat—the boater—a hat popular with other schools. This style did not last long. Miss Nancy Shaw began to think about abandoning the summer hat altogether because, after a couple of years of being folded and squashed into school bags, the straw hats did not keep their shape. In her 1977 Principal’s Report, Mrs Judith Hancock, spoke about this unresolved issue and as a consequence, ‘the Board decided that only one hat would be worn—the navy velour.’ Twenty-first century Grammar girls might think that this was the end of the hat saga—but, no, it was not. In 1986, Mrs Hancock introduced the bucket hat or, as the girls called it, ‘the bowls hat’. This was most likely chosen because it was easy to fold, put in lockers and bags, and was sun safe. However, the bowls hat’s presence in the School was short-lived: it was unpopular with the students who wanted the more traditional velour hat that they felt gave the uniform and the image of the School more gravitas. The hat is a part of how Grammar girls see themselves and their School, and sometimes its very appearance [or non-appearance], says more about the wearer and her attitude than the hat itself. Mrs Jenny Davis Librarian—Special Collections

1929 Mid-winter combined schools tour to Central Queensland—students wearing the cloche style velour hat

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