ETO OD Wool Field Uniform
(1944 - 1945)
In October 1944, Army nurses serving in Europe were given the opportunity to wear a new type of uniform, the ETO Wool Field Uniform. It was modeled on the famous British battle dress. This uniform consisted of a distinctive short jacket, popularly known as the "Ike jacket" (named after Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe, Gen. Dwight "Ike" Eisenhower, who introduced this type of uniform to the Army) and an A-shaped skirt or slacks.
The ETO uniform is quite a unique type of uniform, because there were several different cuts and materials from which it was sewn. The most characteristic version of this uniform is probably the so-called British Made, which you can read more about here. It was distinguished by the shade and weave of the wool from which it was made, pockets with lapels and a metal buckle with which the belt was fastened at the waist.
The Ike jacket perfectly emphasized the female silhouette, creating an hourglass figure – wide shoulders and a narrow waist. No wonder it was so popular among the nurses during World War II. But it’s not all about looks. The Ike jacket guaranteed much greater freedom of movement and comfort compared to the traditional, hip-length service jackets that were issued to nurses.
JACKET:
The jacket was fastened with one row of 2, 3 or 4 buttons hidden under the fabric. It had two breast pockets. A band was sewn at the waist level, fastening to the left side with a metal clasp or button. Additional hooks and eyes were sewn at the bottom of the jacket to ensure greater comfort and to prevent it from being unfastened.
Originally, for both officers and enlisted female personnel, the material was 18 oz. olive drab serge wool. Later 14oz covert wool in shade No. 37 was also used. Many nurses had their ETO uniforms made privately, from dark olive drab fabric. Others simply reworked their olive drab service uniforms by shortening the jacket and sewing on a belt at the waist. In such cases, the gilt buttons on the pockets were often replaced with plastic ones. The buttons on the shoulder epaulets were covered with fabric.
Jacket, Field, Wool, OD, Women's
Original women's battle jacket sewn in England at the end of 1944. The same cut and material was used by both female officers and non-commissioned officers (e.g. WAC). The short jacket was worn in combination with a skirt or trousers of the same fabric. You can read more about the British Made uniform here.
Custom-Made ETO Women’s Jacket
An example of a shortened service jacket. In this case, the original gilt buttons have been kept, as have the officer's braids at the bottom of the sleeves. Remaking the service jacket was a cheaper solution than sewing an ike jacket from scratch.
In January 1945, a new type of Ike jacket was officially introduced. It was an optional uniform for nurses serving in the Army. It differed significantly from the original cut of the jacket. First of all, it had quite wide, almost puffed sleeves, it had no breast pockets, the waist belt was slightly wider and fastened with a button on the left side. The new model of the jacket did not have shoulder epaulets.
Jacket, Field, Wool, Women's
A short, single-breasted jacket introduced at the beginning of 1945. This ike jacket had a front button fastening, a fold-out collar and matching color lining. It was loose at the bust and shoulders and fitted at the waist with a fabric belt that fastened on the left side.
This cut was not very liked by women, so a revised version of the jacket was soon introduced, bringing back buttoned pockets and narrower sleeves. There were plastic buttons on the shoulder epaulets.
Custom-Made ETO Women’s Jacket
A women’s ike jacket with breast pockets and shoulder epaulets fastened with plastic buttons. The jacket has one row of four buttons hidden under the fabric at the front. This model does not have an officers’ braid on the sleeves.
Custom-Made ETO Women’s Jacket
Another variant of a shortened jacket. In this jacket, gilt buttons have been replaced with plastic ones. Officers' braid is visible on the sleeves.
The insignia were worn as on the other types of service jackets – rank insignia were pinned to the shoulder loops, a pair of cut-out U.S. officer insignia to the front upper collar and a pair of Army Nurse Corps branch insignia to the collar lapels.
SKIRT AND TROUSERS:
The olive drab A-shaped skirt had a metal zipper on the left side and was additionally fastened with a button. It was made of the same material as the jacket. The skirt should cover the knees.
Skirt, Wool, OD, Dark, Women’s, Officer’s
A six gore, barathea skirt with narrow buttoned waistband and sufficient hem to allow for possible alteration.
Slacks, Women’s, Winter, Dark OD
Tailored slacks with a high waist and wide legs to provide more complete protection than skirts. The fabric and color match Officer’s Women’s OD Wool Jacket. These types of pants could be worn by nurses both with a classic service jacket and with an ike jacket.
The olive drab slacks had a high waist and quite loose legs with a crease. They were fastened at the waist with three plastic buttons on the left side. The waist was additionally emphasized by pleats and darts. This type of trousers was introduced in August 1943 to be worn with the olive drab service uniform.
Above:
Women's officer’s ike jacket worn in combination with an olive drab skirt, khaki tie and Army Nurse Corps service cap. Officers' insignia are visible on the collar: cut-out U.S. letters at the top, nursing caduceus with the letter "N" at the bottom. Rank insignia are attached to the shoulder loops (second lieutenant or higher).
Above:
Ike jacket with olive drab high waisted trousers. Slacks were a good alternative to a skirt on cooler days. They were especially popular with nurses serving on board air evacuation airplanes. The headwear here is a women's officer's garrison cap with a black and gold braid and a pinned rank.
Pinks and Greens:
The skirt in OD shade No. 54, popularly referred to as pink, was officially only to be worn by Women's Army Corps officers. Nevertheless, in wartime photos, mostly from 1945, you can see that some nurses also chose to wear the light skirt. The chief nurse of a given hospital decided about the possibility of wearing it. Pink skirts have never been worn by nurses on formal occasions or on duty – only in their free time, at parties, while sightseeing or traveling home. The No. 54 skirt did not become an official part of a nurse's wardrobe until 1948.
An interesting solution to prevent the jacket from riding up were buttons sewn on the back of the trousers or skirt which were used to attach the ike jacket.
SHIRT:
The olive drab ETO uniform was most often worn with a khaki cotton shirt (No. 1) and a matching khaki tie. The shirt has two breast pockets with buttons. The first pattern of the khaki shirt had rectangular pocket flaps. Later during the war, the size of the pockets was slightly enlarged, the shape of the flaps was changed to a triangular one, and a pencil hole was added in the left pocket. Darts at the waistline ensured a proper fit.
Waist, Cotton, Women’s
(first pattern)
A woman’s waist made of broadcloth or poplin with a convertible collar to be turned back for wear without the necktie in warm weather when the jacket is not worn. There are two pockets with rectangular flaps and darts at the waistline for proper fit. This shirt had no shoulder loops.
Waist, Cotton, Women’s
(revised pattern)
The revised pattern of a women's shirt with triangular flaps on the pockets. Left pocket has a pencil hole. The shirt was worn under the ike jacket and had no shoulder loops.
The archival photos also show a more casual style of wearing a shirt without a tie. The open collar of the shirt was stretched over the jacket and unfolded. This manner of wearing a uniform had to be approved by the nurse in charge of a given medical installation.
Above:
A slightly looser style of wearing a cotton shirt: with an open collar and without a tie. It was especially popular on warm days.
On cooler days, the khaki shirt was replaced with a woolen shirt which provided much more warmth.
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Waist, Wool, Women’s
(first pattern)
A woman’s waist made of wool shirting flannel with a convertible collar to be turned back for wear without the necktie in warm weather when the jacket is not worn. There are two pockets with rectangular flaps and darts at the waistline for proper fit. This shirt had no shoulder loops.
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Waist, Wool, Women’s
(revised pattern)
The revised pattern of a women's wool shirt with triangular flaps on the pockets. Left pocket has a pencil compartment. This shirt also had no shoulder loops. Military rank and caduceus were attached to the collar.
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The khaki tie complemented the ETO uniform. It was made of a mixture of cotton and mohair, which made it durable and resistant to wrinkles. Women's ties were similar in appearance to those worn by men, but shorter. After the war, in 1949, the color of the tie was changed to olive green.
Necktie, Women’s
A wrinkle and wear resistant tie of cotton-mohair fabric, similar to the enlisted men’s but shorter in length. The four-fold construction permits laundering.
NECKTIE:
The ETO uniform was worn with a women's garrison cap made of matching dark olive drab fabric with black and gold officers' braid. Alternatively, an olive drab ANC service cap or a men's officer's garrison cap could be worn.
The service cap was available in two versions: winter, made of thicker fabric, and summer, made of light fabric. According to the regulations, the hat should be worn evenly on the head, not tilted to the side. In the center, the cap had the United States Coat of Arms, which emphasized the officer's status of a nurse.
Cap, Service, Wool, OD, Nurse’s
The service cap shown in the photo was designed by a private New York company, Knox Hats, and was reserved exclusively for nurses serving in the army.
Cap, Service, Wool, OD, Nurse’s
The inner side of the cap. There is a label with a size of 23 1/2 inches in the head circumference.
The popular garrison cap was officially approved for use by the Army Nurse Corps in July 1944. Prior to that, nurses sometimes decided to wear men's officer’s garrison caps to diversify their wardrobe. The female version of the garrison cap differed from the male one mainly in shape – it resembled a banana. It was supposed to better fit the women's 1940s hairstyles. Like the service cap, the garrison cap was also available in winter and summer versions. All the officer's garrison caps had black and gold braids. The rank insignia should be pinned on the left side of the garrison cap.
Cap, Garrison, Officers', Wool, Elastique, Dark, OD
A straight-shaped male officer's garrison cap that nurses sometimes chose to wear in conjunction with the ETO uniform. Pictured with the silver rank of first lieutenant.
Cap, Garrison, Wool, Women,
Officers’
Women's officer's garrison cap in the shape of a banana. This type of headwear was first issued to women serving in the Women's Army Corps, and only later to Army nurses. The rounded shape was to better suit 1940s hairstyles.
HEADWEAR:
FOOTWEAR:
The ETO uniform was worn with brown oxford shoes or women’s field shoes. Brown leather oxfords with 1 ½-inch heels had a leather sole, rubber heel and were tied with 27-inch long brown laces.
In September 1945, after the end of the war, nurses were also allowed to wear brown pumps in their free time. The shoes had to have covered toes and heels, not have any decorative elements, and the heel could not be higher than 2.5 inches.
Shoes, Service, Women’s, Low
Low women’s service shoes are stylish brown oxfords built for comfort. They have 1 ½-inch heels, rubber lifts and leather soles.
Pumps
An example of brown pumps that may have been worn by nurses in their off-duty time since September 1945. Women bought this type of shoes at their own expense.
To better protect themselves from the cold, women also had the option of putting on women's field shoes. When combining an ike jacket with a skirt, in addition to stockings, you had to put on olive drab socks and roll them over your shoes.
Shoes, Field, Women’s
A 4 ½-inch laced shoe, similar to the Army field shoe, in proper design for women. Standard shoe for the WAC and Army Nurse Corps for drill and field usage. They have 1-inch rubber heels and full rubber soles.
Rectangular leather nurses' handbag was introduced in late 1942. It had a detachable strap, a change purse and a mirror compartment. The color matched the brown oxfords.
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Until November 1943, the utility bag was normally worn on the left shoulder. Later the rules changed. It began to be carried over the shoulder, with the strap resting on the right shoulder and the handbag on the left side. The strap attached to the utility bag with two press studs was detachable, and the bag could be worn like a clutch bag or under the arm.
Bag, Utility, Nurses’
A leather handbag with pockets and change purse. The lining is made of cotton poplin, OD in color. The strap can be adjusted for wearing over the shoulder or shortened for carrying in the hand, or can be removed altogether to allow for carrying under the arm. This handbag was only used by Army Nurse Corps members.
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(The handbag in the photos comes from the collection of Victoria Pageot)
UTILITY BAG:
Nurses had the option of wearing brown leather gloves or wool olive drab gloves with the ETO uniform
Gloves, Leather, Dress, Women’s
A pull-on, gauntlet style glove for servicewomen. They were simple gloves, without any decorative elements.
Gloves, Wool, OD, Women’s
A knit wool glove to be worn in cold weather.
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