Often when you see an FFA member, you recognize them by their blue corduroy jacket with the large FFA emblem on the back. Members are often asked about their blue corduroy and where it came from. With our blog being named “Beneath the Jacket,” we thought we should share the history of the infamous FFA corduroy!  

 

In 1933, FFA Advisor Gus Linter saw a blue corduroy jacket in the window of a hardware store in Fredricktown, Ohio. After connecting with the jacket supplier, he had his chapter’s name stitched on the back of the fabric with gold thread. At the national FFA convention that year, the members of Linter’s chapter debuted their corduroy jackets. These jackets were so popular that the official delegates made them a part of the official FFA attire. At the height of the Great Depression, this cheap but fashionable uniform quickly caught on. Now more than 80,000 FFA jackets are sold each year, with 1.6 yards of corduroy used to create each one! 

 

If you look closely at the members’ jackets you may see some pins on the front right side. Members are allowed to wear a maximum of three pins on their jacket at a time. These medals represent the highest degree earned, the highest office held, and the highest award earned by the member.  

 

Although these pieces may seem fashionable to some, the blue corduroy is only allowed to be worn by members when they are in full official attire (white dress shirt, proper scarf/tie, skirt and pantyhose or slacks, and black closed toe shoes) and attending an FFA related event. The jacket must be zipped all the way up with the tallywhacker (zipper) tucked, collar turned down and cuffs buttoned,

 

Now when you see an FFA member in their fancy blue corduroy, you’ll know why!