Vintage Photos of Women Wearing Trousers in the 1930s _ UK and Australia

Trousers or pants first appear in recorded history among nomadic steppe-people in Western Europe. Archaeological evidence suggests that men and women alike wore pants in that cultural context. However, for much of modern history, the use of trousers has been restricted to men. In many regions, this norm was enforced not only by social custom but also by law. There are, however, many historical cases of women wearing trousers in defiance of these norms, for a variety of reasons, including comfort, freedom of movement, fashion, disguise (notably for runaway slaves), attempts to evade the gender pay gap, and attempts to establish an empowered public identity for women.

Vogue featured its first spread of women wearing slacks in 1939.

Women didn’t wear pants too often in the 1930s, but for summer days at the beach or playing a sport pants were not only acceptable but highly fashionable! For day wear a pair of white or navy blue high waisted wide legs pants with a nautical or sailor look were trendy. On the beach, women wore soft, flowing, very wide leg Beach Pajamas or palazzo pants. They were soft pastel colors or big geometric prints such as stripes and checks. Many had attached overall straps or were a full jumpsuit.