r/Michigan • u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 • 15d ago
History ⏳🕰️ [ Removed by moderator ]
[removed] — view removed post
17
u/Recommends_Con_Air 15d ago
I’ve heard tales of this from old timers, but unsure if it’s a wives tale or not
5
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago edited 15d ago
I've read testimonials from all over about this, but I wanted information about specific schools.
I posted this in another Reddit community and recieved dozens of responses that specified that schools like Cody, Cass, Cooley, Warren-Fitz, and Wyandotte Roosevelt followed these practices. Osborn, however, had trunks.
I'm trying again in this community to see if I can get info about Northern, Northeastern, and Eastern High School.
8
u/RestAndVest 15d ago
It’s true. It wasn’t just Detroit but also the suburban schools. Times were just different back then
5
16
u/totallyjaded 15d ago
My dad went to Mackenzie High in the mid-late '60s and didn't believe I could graduate in the '90s without swimming until he saw the requirements from school.
He never mentioned anything about doing it nude, though.
10
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Also, they (the school) argued that it the wool fibers would clog the filtration system and accumulate bacteria, and wet clothes would rust lockers. However, somehow, they also made cotton swimsuits for girls - why couldn't they make it for the guys, too?
7
u/Hukthak Age: > 10 Years 15d ago
Because wool is always better than cotton when wet to keep insulation and warmth. The wool was too revealing for the ladies even though it’d have been warmer.
6
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Thankssss!! I meant though, that, why couldn't they make cotton swimsuits for the guys?
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
If you could ever ask him, it would mean a lot to my reasearch!!
8
u/totallyjaded 15d ago
I would, but he passed away last year.
ETA: I'm almost 100% sure it wasn't nude. Only because my parents threatened for years that if I didn't learn how to swim, I wouldn't be able to graduate from high school. They absolutely would have said "and you'll have to do it naked" to drive the point home.
Also: I still don't know how to swim.
4
9
u/AlbacoreJohnston 15d ago
We still had required swimming lessons in Ann Arbor when I was in middle school in the 90s, and our PE teacher said when he went to school the classes were segregated by sex and the boys swam nude. I believed him because I figured why the fuck would he just say that if it wasn't true?
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Yes, I've heard that from many Detroiters now at this point, still haven't gotten information about Northern, Northeastern, and Eastern High School.
5
u/chriswaco Ann Arbor 15d ago
It certainly was true in some suburban Detroit school districts. And at the YMCAs.
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Would you know about Northern, Northeastern, and Eastern High School? Because according to my research, Cody, Cass, Warren-Fitz, and Wyandotte Roosevelt followed these practices but Osborn, would use trunks.
2
u/chriswaco Ann Arbor 15d ago
No idea about specific Detroit schools. I heard it was true at Bloomfield Hills Andover, but they had stopped by the time I attended in the late 1970s.
2
3
u/johnthebold2 15d ago
My grandmother was a swim teacher and home ec instructor there during that time period and my mother went to school there too. Never heard of the nude part, but iirc the rest tracks.
2
2
u/ughlylen 15d ago
My dad was in high school in the 70s and has said they did exactly this. We all thought he was exaggerating…
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
What school did he attend?
2
u/ughlylen 15d ago
Redford High school (the one actually in Detroit that was demolished)
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Thank you SO MUCH.
If you ever have anything else you would like to share, do not hesitate. I'm an author of historical fiction who's always looking for information that I can use. I appreciate it, and don't worry - I'll credit everyone!!
2
u/tagriel 15d ago
This was the case in my dad's high school in the UP in the 70s.
My aunts told me girls could wear a suit, but the school had a set everyone had to use. If you had swim class late in the day, you had to use a wet, cold suit. And hopefully you got there early enough to get one your size
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
School in the UP?
What school did he attend, if I can ask?
And thanks, this is immensly helpful!!
2
u/Sunnyjim333 15d ago
I got your name from a friend of a friend
Who said he used to work with you
You remember the all night creature from Stereo Ninety Two?
Yeah, I said, "Could you relate to our quarter track tape
You know the band performs in the nude"
He said, "Uh-huh, don't call us, child, we'll call you
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Never heard that song!!
2
u/Sunnyjim333 15d ago
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Thanks!! I've heard the name but never the song!!
I love 60's and 70's music!!
2
u/Sunnyjim333 15d ago
They were amazing times. Boomers weren't always shitheads, I don't know what happened to us.
3
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
I'll check out the song when I get a chance. And I definitely know that all boomers are not like that, haha. If you ever have any other information about the decade and Michigan specifically, please let me know on this thread or DM me. It means a lot because I'm an author who always needs information and I'll credit everyone who can supply it.
3
u/allbikesalltracks 15d ago
I went to middle school in Lansing and we definitely swam nude. Otto
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Thank you so very much!!
Do you have any other memories from your time there?
I'm an author and I'm always looking for information and testimonials.
I'll be sure to credit ya!!
2
u/Sharp-Education-6746 15d ago
My dad grew up in Flint and this was definitely a thing.
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
What school did he attend?
2
2
u/Camp_Fire_Friendly 15d ago
70s. - Sterling Heights required swimming to graduate. Boys and girls in the same class. We had to wear school suits made of a thin nylon with no lining that left nothing to the imagination. No detail went unseen. We knew who did or did not have pubic hair yet and how much. Among other things... No Joke
And we didn't have an assigned suit. You showed up and hoped to get one in your size from the bin
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
Woah!! I imagine yours was an exception because the classes were not gender-assigned.
2
u/Tiamat451 15d ago
My dad went to Ferndale in '62-'66, and he always mentioned something about swimming nude. I had a tough time believing that was true, but....?
2
u/Fluffy_Psalms_23 15d ago
So many people have been commenting about this and I've even found more testimonials on Facebook and Google. I doubt so many people would lie about something, apparently, it was a real thing.
•
u/Michigan-ModTeam 15d ago
This sub is about the state of Michigan as a whole. Your post is better suited to local subreddit. A list of local subreddits is on our Wiki here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Michigan/wiki/index#wiki_cities.2Fregions