![Wonderful Old Photographs That Illustrate the Evolution of Trousers in Women's Fashion in the 20th Century](upload/news/screenshot-2023-11-24-202714-6902.png)
Since the adoption of trousers in Western Europe in Late Antiquity, trousers have been largely worn by men and not by women until the early 20th century. In 1919, Luisa Capetillo challenged the mainstream society by becoming the first woman in Puerto Rico to wear trousers in public. Capetillo was sent to jail for what was then considered to be a "crime", but the judge later dropped the charges against her. Women increasingly wore trousers as leisurewear in the 1920s and 30s. In the early 20th century female pilots and other working women often wore trousers. Actresses Marlene Dietrich and Katharine Hepburn were often photographed in trousers from the 1930s. During World War II, women working in industrial work in war service wore their husbands' (suitably altered) trousers, and in the post-war era trousers were still common casual wear for gardening, socialising, and other leisure pursuits. Similarly, in Britain during the Second World War, because of the rationing of clothing, many women took to wearing their husbands' civilian clothes to work while their husbands were away in the armed forces. This was partly because they were seen as work garments, and partly to allow women to keep their clothing allowance for other uses. As the men's clothes wore out, replacements were needed, so that by the summer of 1944 it was reported that sales of women's trousers were five times more than in the previous year.
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3. A traditional sportswear ensemble from the 1920s and 1930s included riding boots, jodhpurs, a white shirt, and a tie.
![](https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-SbMTi7l632Q/WXb5qwyIPOI/AAAAAAACwUo/Sw07Y9U4dSII9Xox6oPYRmbsE4pNZvMpACLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-3.jpg)
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5. The androgynous look's monarch, Marlene Dietrich, in the 1930s
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6. The 1940s Land Girls outfits
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7. During the war years, masculine socks, shoes, and wide-leg pants were in style.
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vm134Rwq0Sk/WXb5rnEii9I/AAAAAAACwU4/rUncdwkoutgCvJWidfkRlZxiOYvVZKyswCLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-7.jpg)
8. Do not forget to wear saddle shoes, socks, men's jumpers, and pants from 1945.
![](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b14p35hD2Ls/WXb5r45MNsI/AAAAAAACwU8/-aNBRpO6L3o8GSYMs68WD5a5BjmbH2CKgCLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-8.jpg)
9. Shapeless shirts, turn-up pants, and pedal pushers combine to create a timeless 1950s aesthetic.
![](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jjiMXj0kUt4/WXb5sJNSJUI/AAAAAAACwVA/0FcdF6t0yvI4oDQgTQ3NR4VE9GeM-sD_ACLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-9.jpg)
10. Rocker chicks added killer heels to their skintight turn-up jeans to give them a hint of sultry femininity.
![](https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WUhOSQjQgSY/WXb5pTAR6jI/AAAAAAACwUY/2Hwv8OzI9bI5UFSjEQXRdqwqsa94U7r8gCLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-10.jpg)
11. Brigitte Bardot with a 1960s suit and tie with drainpipe trousers
![](https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YYiWknYhgQw/WXb5pUvzFkI/AAAAAAACwUU/51oh2j70OugGh5gY7HrOdMv9JFJmTUvawCLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-11.jpg)
12. A late 1960s Biba trouser suit
![](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nydtHMWcJIk/WXb5qCTm-jI/AAAAAAACwUg/988bbfK0JWcf1J9NUEB9h7it3oK2Oa83ACLcBGAs/s1600/vintage-women-trousers-12.jpg)
13. Model Claudia Jennings in Playboy, December 1974, demonstrating the ultrasexiness of a three-piece suit and tie
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