The History Of The Hawaiian Shirt
Author: Hannah Roberts

We all love looking at Hawaiian shirts. Looking back at the
history of hawaiian shirts, also known as the "Aloha Shirt", we
see that it can be traced to the 19th century and to the early
western missionaries. Those missionaries thought that covering
the recent Christianized natives would be more appropriate than
allowing them to go topless. In the 1930's Hawaiian shirts
started to be produced commercially and continue to this day.
Some researchers have discovered stories about the pioneer of
the Aloha shirt, a Waikiki, Honolulu, Chinese merchant named
Mr. Ellery Chun. Mr. Chun was the owner of the well-known King
Smith Clothiers and dry goods store. He was born in Honolulu in
1909 and he died at the age of 91 on June 16, 2000.

With the help of her sister, Ethel Chun Lum, they started to
shape the history of the hawaiian shirt. Ethel Chun Lum made
the first floral, brightly colored, short sleeved shirt which
is made up of kimono fabric. On July 15, 1963, Mr. Chun
registered his own business with "Aloha" as the trade name and
it was then that he began generating and advertising Hawaiian
printed shirts. He placed a sign on his window shop that read,
"Aloha Shirt", which ignited the success of the sales of his
business.

The shirts were enormously popular and sold mainly to the local
residents, surfers, tourists and boys who loved the beach. The
"Aloha Shirt" was first displayed in an advertisement in the
Honolulu Adviser on June 28, 1935 with the words "Aloha Shirt"
as the title. Hawaiian shirts were improved in the mid 1920's
with Rayon. This made the Hawaiian Print Aloha shirt the
ultimate souvenir for tourists.

Hawaiian shirts were well-known in the 1940's and 1950's. Even
celebrities wore the famous "Aloha Shirt". In fact, Elvis
Presley, who was known as the undisputed king of rock, had a
collection of Hawaiian Shirts that he used in his performances.
He was often spotted and photographed wearing Hawaiian shirts.

Harry S. Truman, the 33rd President of the United States, wore
Aloha Shirts. As a matter of fact, he was featured in a 1951
issue of Life Magazine wearing a Hawaiian shirt. Frank Sinatra
and Montgomery Cliff also wore Hawaiian shirts during the
motion picture "From here to Eternity".

There are still a lot of celebrities and public figures who
continue to wear and endorse Hawaiian shirts. A list of famous
people is enough to prove that Hawaiian shirts are loved by
many. The Hawaiian shirt served as the symbol of the island
paradise. It represents the warm and pleasant greeting to
people who visit the Hawaiian Islands. However, we would not
have worn the Hawaiian shirts if they were not created at all.
Let us pay tribute to the people who shaped the history of the
Hawaiian shirt.


About The Author: Hannah Roberts has an interest in Hawaiian
Shirts. To access more articles on Hawaiian Shirts or for
additional information and resources visit this Hawaiian Shirts
related website http://www.brighthawaiianshirtresources.info