original oil painting by Marlyn Boyd, PhD, RN
The Art of Nursing
The Art of Nursing
Monday, July 11, 2011
University of Maryland "Flossie"
I uploaded the digital scan of my University of Maryland School of Nursing cap painting today (marlyn-boyd.fineartamerica.com). So few schools show their traditional caps on their websites. The University of Maryland SON displays theirs proudly and has narrative that describes its history. "Flossie" as it was affectionately named was unique to the Maryland program. I actually remember several University of Maryland grads wearing their caps back in the day. I always thought the caps were so regal and delicate looking. There was no confusing their cap with anyone else's. When you saw that unique cap you knew exactly what program produced that nurse! If you want to learn more about the University of Maryland School of Nursing cap go to: http://nursing.umaryland.edu/museum/history/flossie
University of Maryland School of Nursing "Flossie"
original oil painting by Marlyn Boyd, PhD, RN
original oil painting by Marlyn Boyd, PhD, RN
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Lovely! I think their cap is probably one of the most unique and beautiful - and high maintenance! - of all the caps I've ever seen. It seems that most of the oldest, and more intricate and unique designs of caps come from schools along the northern half of the East Coast! Settled first, I'm sure that has a lot to do with it.
ReplyDeleteThe original Purdue University S.O.N. cap is right up there for uniqueness with this one though, even though I'd bet most would not call it especially beautiful. It was a little box-shaped affair, perched up on top of the head, designed to mimic the school mascot's headgear - Purdue Pete!! I've only found ONE photograph of it online too, and that is of a Purdue student (I verified it through a Google Images search) with an RN clinical instructor (not from Purdue) standing side by side, looking at something - I don't recall right off exactly what they were looking at, but it might have been a medication label, or a syringe, or something similar.
They have "modernized" it since the 60's though. It is (or was) a tall, wide winged affair, and If you go to Kays Caps website, and look up the #907, you'll see what I mean. It's on the website to purchase, as a plain white cap without stripes.
I imagine if you request to purchase the specific Purdue University model, you can probably get it with the stripes applied, or at least included. I'm not sure about their Cap Pins (Purdue, I mean) though, since I have no idea if Kay's provided them, or if the school got them from another source, such as Balfour, or another collegiate jewelry provider.
Kay's has not only their "Stock" designs, which are shown on the website, plus their OWN specialty designs for schools with very unique styles that Kay's made, but, in addition to upwards of 3,000 designs and the patterns needed to make them, from two other companies, namely Fort Orange and White Crown Caps, which Kay's acquired when they bought out those companies, after they went out of business. So, probably just about any cap ever produced could be acquired from Kay's, if you know the name and address of the school (after all, how many "St Mary's S.O.N." and "Methodist Hospital S.O.N." have there been over the years?) and the year for which you're interested in buying, they can probably provide it. Since many schools altered, upgraded, or updated their styles, especially following the introduction of the PermaStarch process, knowing the year could be fairly important.
They have several of the usual Organdy styles as well, some plain, others with a narrow black band tucked in between the two rows of "ruffling" around the bottom edge; and a small range of "Petite" models, copied after some of the regular designs, just made for significantly smaller heads.
I used to be friends with the wife of one of my husband's friends in the late 70's. She was a Student Nurse at Purdue, and she had the "new" cap style. It already had the graduate's velvet ribbons on it, even though she was still a Senior Student, and this was quite a while before graduation. I have found over the years that it apparently wasn't that uncommon to do this with the Senior's caps, as it gave them something of an "Air of Authority" while still a student. It's also got the school colors in the bands - a wide (1" - 1½"?) black velvet band, with a narrower2 (½"-¾"?) gold velvet ribbon across the center of the black one, and the ends are anchored by two round school cap pins, which I think were modeled directly on the School Pin worn on the uniform.
Does anyone know how to launder and starch a flossie? Are there antique stores or sites that sell these University of Maryland caps? I am a graduate of the school and want to start wearing it for a group of hospice nurses who honor retired nurses under hospice care.
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