Neckties: A history
Neckties (ties) as known today, were first introduced in the late 1890’s/early 1900’s. At that time ties tended to be more patterned and colourful, for example Paisely patterned, than the more traditional forms of neck wear of the time, specifically dress cravats. Early ties tended to be <11cms wide and just long enough to be tucked into the top of the waistcoat – an everyday item of clothing for millions of men and boys at the time. Following World War I, regimental ties, thought to be the first form of ‘club’ ties were introduced to be worn in memory of fallen colleagues and as a ‘badge of honour’, if not trust, fellowship and reliance. Regimental ties, based on regimental colours and often worn together with a bowler hat, had stripes running from left shoulder (heart) to right hip (sword). When Brook Brothers introduced striped ties in North America as fashion accessories in 1902, the stripes ran from right shoulder to left hip. This tradition continues to the present day.
In 1922, a New York tie maker, Jesse Langsdorf, devised a method of cutting the fabric for a tie on the bias and making ties in three segments. This technique facilitated the tying of the tie and ties returning to their original shape when untied. Most ties to the present day are “Langsdorf ties”.
First dental ties
The first dental tie, at least in the UK, may have been an Army Dental Corp tie. The Corp, formed in 1921, would appear to have introduced a Corp tie sometime in the 1920s, according to a 1929 entry in an early Royal Army Dental Corp Museum accession book. Regrettably, to date the Royal Army Dental Corp Museum has been unable to find this tie in its collection.
By 1930, or possibly some time before the Royal Dental and Charing Cross Hospitals Athletic Club “ had introduced a “best reppe silk” club colours tie, as advertised in by TM Lewin in the 1930 calendar of the Royal Dental Hospital:
As you will note from information provided in the main body of the Archive, the oldest tie in the Archive to date is a Manchester Turner Dental Hospital tie dating back to the 1930s. No record of when this tie was introduced has been found to date.
It is considered highly unlikely that the Turner Dental Hospital would have been alone amongst dental schools and other dental organisations in the UK in having its own tie in the 1930’s.
Further research will hopefully reveal the history of the introduction of the first dental tie in the UK, or possibly elsewhere in the world, together with details of other early dental ties.
Any assistance in expanding what is known of the introduction of the first dental ties will be greatly appreciated.
1940s
It was not until the mid-1940’s, when waistcoats were no longer considered everyday wear and the waistband of gentlemen’s trousers tended to be tailored no higher than the natural waistline, that ties were made long enough (typically 140cms) to extend to the waistband when tied, while leaving sufficient tail to tuck into the loop on the reverse of the blade (face) of the tie. Concurrently, ties became more diverse in design and width and were tied in knots other than the standard school tie ‘four-in-hand’ knot, or more symmetrical half-Windsor knots which remain popular to this day.
Bow ties, most commonly worn with evening wear and typically black, were a Victorian invention credited to Lord Dupplin. Bow ties, as part of day wear, tended, at first, to be considered the preference of eccentric academics, but won wider popularity when worn by eminent individuals such as Winston Churchill. Others who favoured a bow tie included, for example, surgeons, vets and dentists who did not wish their tie to fall into open, possibly infected wounds or the face of a patient when wearing an open, or low buttoned jacket. Nowadays, dental bowties tend to be bespoke items for aficionados of alternative neckwear.
To date, only two examples of a dental cravat or stock (Ascot) have been donated to the Archive – the cravat of the Students Association of the University of Nijmegen and the cravat produced, together with a tie to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the Liverpool University Dental Alumni and Student Golf Club . Traditionally, such neckwear tends to be worn, possibly by women as well as men, when attending sporting or summer social occasions.
Post-World War II
Following World War II, the number of dental ties would appear to have greatly increased, especially during the 1960’s and 1970’s when many specialist societies were formed. Also, this is the period when it was not uncommon for a tie to be produced to commemorate dental conferences, anniversaries and other events and for dental companies to have a tie to be worn by representatives, notably at dental exhibitions and related events. In their ‘hey day’, in the second half of the twenty century, dental ties were widely worn, typically with pride, specifically if they signified membership of an elite, costly to belong to, or other than ‘run of the mill’ organisation. It was ‘bad form’ not to wear one’s ‘club’ tie when attending a meeting of the organisation or visiting one’s college. Seniority could be signified by the wearing of a no longer available ‘club’ tie which had been succeeded by a more modern version; hence, certain dental organisations having had several designs of tie over the years. Also, silk ‘club’ ties, some replaced in the 60’s and 70’s by crimplene or other man-made materials tend to be favoured, at least in dentistry. Similarly, ties with motifs, stripes and other design features woven into the fabric of the tie are favoured by members of the profession over less expensive printed ‘club’ ties.
Historic insight
Dental ties were so prolific in the 1970’s, 1980’s and 1990’s, despite the growing number of women in the profession, that it was not uncommon for male dentists of all ages, including dental students, to have a small collection of dental ties. These ties provide a special insight into the evolution of dental organisations and anniversaries and events held over the hundred years since the introduction of the first dental ties sometime in the 1920’s. The BDA Museum Dental Necktie Archive aims to capture this insight by bringing together and documenting as many different dental ties of different ages as possible.