Fitting In?


Changing Values and Identities in Canadian Women’s Uniforms
1945-1980



About
Historical Background
Acknowledgments

Uniforms:
1. Gymnastics, 1945-1955
2. Graduation, 1948 
3. Domestic Service, 1950s
4. Royal Canadian Air Force (W.D), 1953
5. TTC Guide, 1955
6. Nursing, 1950s- 1960s
7. Expo 67’ Canadian Pavillion, 1967
8. PWA Flight Attendent, 1971
9. CN Tower Jumpsuit, 1976
10. Unitarian, 1950s -1980s
11. Tim Hortons, 1970s



Honorary Doctor of Law Graduation Robe Worn by Miss Ethel Johns

Location: Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick
Date: 1948
Materials: Velvet, crepe and polyester 
Maker: Harcourts Limited
Accreditation: Canadian Museum of History, 2000.111.420.1


This graduation gown was worn by Miss Ethel Johns for her honorary Doctor of Law degree ceremony in 1948. This designation was granted to her by Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, four years after she retired from her forty-two-year occupation as a nurse. Ms. Johns is a significant figure in education and healthcare within Canada. She founded the first Canadian university degree for the field of nursing in 1919 at the University of British Colombia. Throughout her life she promoted formal education and equal opportunity employment for women in nursing. Johns also impacted education on a global scale. From 1925, she took the role of field director at the Rockefeller Foundation where she standardized nursing education in Eastern Europe. As of 2025, there are over forty universities that offer a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in Canada.
 
Portrait of Ethel Johns


Illustration of Dr. Ethel Johns’ graduation robe. 

Physical Description: This graduation robe which measures 48 inches in length from neck to hem is made from a significant amount of black crepe. The 27-inch long sleeves are lined with a thick satin. Each sleeve has three velvet stripes, 2 inches in width. Stylistic details include heavy shoulder pleating and gathering below the front and back yokes. Black velvet trims the front opening. 




References:
  1. Ethel Johns. 1933. Accession 82.1/2. University of British Colombia. https://digitize.library.ubc.ca/digitizers-blog/explore-open-collections-history-of-nursing-in-pacific-canada-part-1/
  2. Johns, Miss Ethel. Academic Gown. 1948. Accession 2000.420.1. Canadian Museum of History. Gatineau, QC. https://www.historymuseum.ca/collections/artifact/1313745
  3. Street, Margaret M. Watch-Fires on the Mountains: The Life and Writings of Ethel Johns. University of Toronto Press, 1973. JSTOR.  http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3138/j.ctvfrxpb1
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