Kingston General Hospital School of Nursing Alumnae Collection
Category
Nursing
Nursing Uniforms
Classification
Nursing
Nursing Uniforms
Accession Number
995002061
Description
Cotton cap worn by graduate nurses; cap has been starched, folded and pinned with 9 straight pins; the outside edge of cap has a band of black velvet sewn on.
Cotton cap worn by graduate nurses; cap has been starched, folded and pinned with 9 straight pins; the outside edge of cap has a band of black velvet sewn on.
Number Of Parts
1
Dates
1938
1969
circa 1938-1969
Date Remarks
Donor's remarks
Material
fabric: white; black
Inscriptions
"GRAD" is written in black at back and bottom of cap
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0007
0007 Closet C
Length
14.0 cm
Width
19.0 cm
Depth
10.0 cm
Unit Of Measure
centimeters
Dimension Notes
Length: 14.0 cm. x Width: 19.0 cm. x Depth: 10.0 cm.
Condition Remarks
Holes have been put into the starched cotton by the straight pins, but no corrosion is evident; the word "Grad" has been permanently marked onto the cloth; the cotton cloth has no tears or abrasions
Copy Type
Original
Reference Types
Person
Websites
Reference Comments
Marilyn Boston
Canadian Museum of History, "Symbol of a Profession: One Hundred Years of Nurses' Caps," https://www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/hist/infirm/inint01e.html
"For Service to Humanity: Nursing Education at Kingston General Hospital," Museum of Health Care. https://www.museumofhealthcare.ca/explore/exhibitions/forservicetohumanity.html
Research Facts
Throughout the twentieth century, nurses' uniforms changed, in particular with the rising of hemlines. The nurse's uniform was generally white, and Kingston General Hospital uniforms were once known for "turkey red" hemlines. Different levels of nursing education had different uniforms, in particular different caps, as graduate nurses had black bands on their caps to indicate their level of education.
Nurses' caps in Canada changed and evolved over the years, with caps resembling a nun's coif used by military Nursing Sisters and as a reminder of Roman Catholic nursing tradition. Older nurses' caps were styled similarly to caps that female domestic servants wore, and were made to cover the head and keep hair neat. These evolved into highly starched symbolic nurses' caps which perched on the top or near the back of the head. Nurses' caps were white, and usually cut from a flat pattern that could be folded and unfolded for starching and cleaning. The nurse's cap began to disappear in the 1970s as nursing education moved from hospitals to colleges and nurses wanted to be identified more closely with doctors and other medical professionals who wore no uniform.
Exhibit History
On exhibit 100TH Anniversary of Public Health Canada, Ottawa L-2019-7 27 Nov – 2 Dec 2019.