Join us at the Tri-Cities Historical Museum for the third lecture in the ‘Port to Paint’ lecture series! ‘The “Best Dressed Women in the World Today:” A Style Examination of the U.S. Coast Guard’s SPARS’ will be presented by Joshua Simon; Assistant Curator of Exhibits at the Tri-Cities Historical Museum.
The women of the United States Coast Guard Women’s Reserve (known as the SPARS) were hailed as “… the ‘best dressed women in the world today’…” at the Associated Apparel Manufacturers of Los Angeles’ 1943 Fall Fashion Week. The art of fashion, its associated consumerism, and gender will be discussed as integral components of the SPARS’ experience as enlisted service members, sometimes in contradictory ways.
Joshua D. Simon (he/his) is the Assistant Curator of Exhibits at the Tri-Cities Historical Museum. He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University in 2019 and a Master’s degree from Iowa State University in 2022. He is currently working on his Ph.D. at Western Michigan University.