Blog #9

There are two main focuses in the photograph A Soldier and a Woman in a Park, the woman and the soldier and the Old Senate Building. Both of these subjects can be researched through two different historical categories: cultural and architectural or monumental buildings. I found the cultural research to be more interesting. The 1940s was an era where many significant changes took place. WWII had started in 1939. The United States managed to stay out of the conflict for the first few years. This proved to be very beneficial because industries manufacturing products for the war created much needed jobs for Americans. This, in turn brought the U.S. out of the Great Depression it had been suffering from during the 1930s. However, The United States was unable to remain neutral after December, 8th 1940 when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. The next day, December, 9th 1940 the United States officially entered WWII and declared war on Japan (wwiihistory.info).
These significant events caused major changes in the economy, as well as the culture in the United States. Specifically dealing with this photo, these changes can explain why the man and woman are wearing what they are. The soldier is dressed in full military uniform. This was probably typical during the early 1940s for a man to be seen in uniform on a daily basis. With the war going on, many males who were old enough to serve in the military either volunteered or were drafted. Maybe the man in this picture is getting ready to leave for duty. Perhaps, since he is outside the Old Senate Building in Washington D.C. he has some sort of importance in the military. After looking at some pictures of United States Military uniforms from WWII, it appears that this gentleman’s uniform could be an U.S. Army Air Force uniform.

The clothing worn by the woman in this photograph is equally interesting. The war brought on a change in fashion trends among women during the 1040s. Cloth was rationed because it was needed for war efforts, therefore fashion went through some changes. The woman in the picture is wearing a two part suit, a skirt and jacket, with a blouse underneath. These suits became popular during the 1940s. I found two different suits through my research, the siren suit and the convertible suit. The siren suit consisted of a skirt and a jacket that zipped up. The reason they are called this is because when the sirens would go off at night for air raid drills it was easy to quickly put on this suit over your pajamas (Weston). The other suit was called the convertible suit. It was similar in appearance to the siren suit and consisted of a short skirt, jacket and blouse. The shortage of fabric made these two suits popular (Goodwin). It appears that the woman in this picture could be wearing the convertible suit.
I thought doing historical research about my chosen photograph helped me form a more personal relation with the subjects captured in the picture.

Works Cited

Sue Goodwin, Peggy Whitley. "American Cultural History." Lone Star Kingwood College

Library. Jul 2008 Lone Star Kingwood-College Library, Web. 30 Sep2009..

Pauline Weston Thomas, . "Rationing and Utility Clothing of the 1940s." Fashion-Era. Fashion-Era.com, Web. 30 Sep 2009. .

"A Brief History of WWII." World War II History Info. 2003. U.S. Army Center for Military History, Web. 30 Sep 2009. I/UnitedStates.html>.