From the Florida Memory Archives, here is a great snap of two FSU Freshman wearing their Freshman beanies. In the 1930s and 40s, college Freshman were often required to wear beanies or “dinks” during their first term on campus. After WWII, the tradition largely died out although you can still find archival images of Freshman in the 1960s sporting dinks. One Polytechnic archives reported that students in 1967 held a beanie burning ceremony. As a form of hazing, dink wear seems relatively benign. I’d love to see this style of short brimmed, low crown cap return to campus as some kind of mandatory Freshman garb.
UW – River Falls sporting dinks and sandals in the 1960s
Beanie/Freshman hazing dink from Wheaton college
EKU students in Dinks and loafers in 1963
Late for Class? (A Freshman Rush). Comic postcard from 1906 via George Wahr
I love the first photo of the girls in the solid color dinks. So cute! And I agree, a pretty benign sort of “hazing” if it can even be considered that! Love your website.