Guess the decade: UBC edition

How well do you recognize popular hairstyles and fashions throughout the 20th century? Test your knowledge of UBC student life—and style trends—from 1915 to 1999!

Students at UBC have formed countless clubs and organizations, sported different hairstyles, and modeled a range of (sometimes questionable) fashion trends, stretching all the way back to 1915. In this quiz, put your knowledge of the decades to the test and travel through time with these archival images that span the 20th century at UBC.

For each image, enter the decade when you think the photo was taken into the text box below. All images are from between the 1910s and the 1990s. How many decades can you guess correctly?

Black and white image of a group of female students wearing thick wool coats, hats decorated with fur and feathers, and carrying books
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 93.1/2]
Black and white photo of students with shaggy haircuts, wide-collared shirts under sweaters, in The Ubyssey office, poring over newspapers and answering corded telephone
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 41.1/562-3]
Black and white image of women with curled shoulder-length hair in knee-length skirts and suit jackets posing on a bench
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 103.1/92]
Black and white image of students watching as a teacher demonstrates the use of film, the male students are wearing suits and the female students are wearing long skirts and collared shirts
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/8191-1]
Black and white image of a group of short-haired young men in full suits and brimmed hats eating lunch on the floor
Photo by George Van Wilby / UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/2419]
Black and white image of four students floating in inner tubes and carrying an umbrella, men in swim trunks and one woman in a patterned one piece, the other in a bikini
Photo by Susan Stern / UBC Archives [UBC 44.1/903]
Black and white photo of students competing in an event outside Main Library, men with short hair in long coats, hats, and collared shirts, women in knee-length skirts and knit sweaters with shoulder-length curled hair
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/13081-1]
Black and white image of male students storming the wall clad in athletic shorts, hoodies, t-shirts, and windbreakers, the wall is branded with an ad that reads "Enjoy Coke"
Photo by Media Services / UBC Archives [UBC 44.1/2457]
Colour photo of four male students posing in front of a tennis net in polo shirts and ring-neck tees, athletic shorts and sweatpants
Photo courtesy of the AMS Archives
Black and white image of students with shaggy hair and muttonchops socializing outside. Men are wearing tank tops, collared shirts, and henleys while women are in blouses with jeans or skirts, or short dresses
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/15768-1]

Black and white image of a group of students sitting on a ship deck wearing suits, long coats, long skirts, hats, and collared shirts

 

Colour photo of three clean-cut male students with short hair in brown suits wearing green dunce caps
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/12149]
Colour photo of three female students in long coats and knee-length skirts with short curled hair
Photo by John Tyrrell / UBC Archives [UBC 93.1/149]
Black and white photo of a student with a mullet wearing a collared shirt under a graphic sweater holding a giant tooth brush at the Pre-Dental Society booth
Photo courtesy of AMS Archives
Black and white photo of a group of shirtless male students in khaki pants shaving and brushing their teeth, they have short hair and some wear horn-rimmed glasses
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/6644-1]
Black and white image of students playing chess clad in leather jackets, flannels, collared shirts, and horn-rimmed glasses
Photo courtesy of the AMS Archives
Black and white photo of students at in-person registration, female student in the foreground is wearing a paisley blouse and a tightly-cropped, curled bouffant bob
Photo courtesy of UBC Archives [UBC 5.2/134-1]
Black and white photo of a student in a short-sleeved collared shirt with tightly-cropped hair tests soil content in a lab with wooden walls while seated on a wooden stool
Photo by Peter Holborne / UBC Archives [UBC 1.1/9570]
Colour image of a female student with loose short hair wearing a loose blouse and wide-legged jeans studying in a library painted with stripes of bold colours, students in the background wear long knit skirts
Photo by Jim Banham / UBC Archives [UBC 41.1/514-2]
Black and white image of students in t-shirts and over-sized sweaters cheering in the stands at a game
Photo by Susan Stern / UBC Archives [UBC 44.1/880]