Word: neckerchiefs
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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Nelson & the Neckerchief...
...your issue of Jan. 14 you state, concerning the dress reform in the U.S. Navy, that the black neckerchief is worn to mourn the death of Nelson...
...book, The Origins of Some Naval Terms and Customs, Lieut. Commander R. G. Lowry, R.N., writes as follows: A neckerchief usually of black silk was worn around the neck, and was sometimes used so as to protect the coat from the pigtail, but its real use was as a sweat rag worn around the neck or forehead; it was generally black in colour because this showed the dirt least. The black silk was in general use some years before Nelson's death; it may have been worn as mourning for him following the precedent of the ship...
...tradition-loving U.S. Navy was getting set to pitch a sea bag full of salt-rimed traditions overboard. Ready for the deep six were the square collar (origin: to protect blouses from tarred pigtails), the black neckerchief (to mourn the death of Lord Nelson), the bell-bottom trousers (to roll up easily for swabbing decks). For enlisted men, who had long envied the practical elegance of officers' uniforms while chafing at the lack of pockets and the tight fit of their own "monkey suits," it was good news. At shore stations and in the Fleet last week...