Follows on from FROM THE VAULT – A History of Police Uniform – Part 1: 1864 – 1905 posting of Tuesday 3rd of July
New patterns for the police uniforms for those under the rank of Sub-Inspector were introduced in 1906. The new navy uniforms were less tight fitting than the old ones. Country police were still wearing the khaki uniform with broad brimmed hat. Also in 1906 the numbers appearing on the police badge were moved to the collar.
Motorcycles were introduced as a mean of transport in 1925 but it wasn’t until 1936 that a change in uniform was agreed on that would suit this new style of policing. In 1936 motorcycle riding breeches were launched and in 1938 unbreakable goggles and leather gauntlets became available for motorcycle patrol.
As summer approached each year complaints about the uniform for the ranks below commissioned officers became persistent. In 1946, a new open-neck tunic in both blue and khaki came into use.
The blue serge trousers featured a royal blue stripe down the outside leg. A new style white, step crown helmet was also introduced. By 1950 the long-sleeved shirt sported pockets and shoulder straps; and it was permissible to wear this without the tunic as the official summer uniform. Commissioned officers were able to wear the new open-neck tunic from 1954.
Further requests for cooler uniforms resulted in another uniform change in 1960. This time the uniform was drab olive in colour, and the fabric a 60/40 wool and Terylene mix. The tie, belt and shoes were brown, and this was crowned with a new style cap and helmet badge, affectionately known as the ‘pineapple’.
In June 1965, the drab olive uniform was issued to newly sworn-in policewomen. The winter uniform consisted of a tunic, skirt, cream blouse and dark brown shoes and gloves. The summer uniform was a belted short-sleeved dress. The women also wore the same cap as the men, and it was distinguished from the men’s cap by a partial silver band.
Commissioned officers also considered changing from the blue to olive, but felt that the ‘man in blue’ should not disappear entirely. They decided to purchase a standard blue material, and select a standard style of uniform, ensuring they appeared in uniformity.
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This information has been supplied by the Queensland Police Museum from the best resources available at the time of writing. The Police Museum is open 9am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 10am to 3pm on the last Sunday of the month (Feb-Nov) and is located on the Ground Floor of Police Headquarters at 200 Roma Street, Brisbane. Contact: E: museum@police.qld.gov.au
“A History of Police Uniform – Part 2: 1906 – 1970” by the Queensland Police Service is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (BY) 2.5 Australia Licence. Permissions may be available beyond the scope of this licence. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/au/legalcode
