Since 1967, the Ohio University marching band has maintained the same basic uniform.
As members come and go, one aspect of the Ohio University Marching 110 has remained constant through most of its history — the uniform.
Since 1913, the Marching 110 has only had two major changes in its attire, Josh Boyer, assistant director of the Marching 110, said.
“We’re not anticipating any changes anytime soon," Boyer said. "It’s a traditional look. It’s a bold look. We like to have people recognize us as 'Ohio.'”
All across the country, marching bands, which gained popularity in college through the military, used a military-style uniform. In 1961, John Calhoun Baker, the president of OU at the time, was pushing the university to become an Ivy League-style school, so he requested the band uniforms change into something more preppy, Boyer said. The marching band director at the time, William Brophy, consented, and the uniform transformed into a green blazer with gray slacks for the men and gray skirts for the women, Boyer said.
The present-day uniform has been used since 1967, when band director Gene Thrailkill decided six years of the green blazer was six years too many. Boyer added bands across the country had been breaking barriers with their music and attire and Thrailkill did not want to be behind the curve.
“(Thrailkill) wanted to make a big change," Boyer said. "He wanted to change the band to be more like the Big Ten brethren that he was used to.”
Thrailkill graduated from University of Michigan in 1960 and was a member of its band.
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At first, some students were confused with the drastically new appearance, but that changed immediately once they heard the new style of music that accompanied the clothing change, according to Terry Krause, an OU alumna who was a freshman in the new-age 1967 band. Once the fans heard the band playing popular music of the time, they became ecstatic, he said.
“Any change makes you wonder," Krause said. "Everything had changed — we went from women in the band to no women in the band, the Ivy League look to new uniforms. Everything was subdued to begin with, just a smattering of applause, because we looked like every other band.”
Marching 110 alumni are pleased with the continuity of the uniform, Krause said. In a time when renovation and evolution are at its peak, former 110 members can return to OU and be ensured that a component of their history is still a major piece of the band.
“For me and some of the older guys in my era there is a feeling of pride," Krause said. "We started this and they still do this. ... It’s a grandparental kind of feeling.”
The current uniform has only had slight modifications since its introduction. Those include slight color changes, material changes for comfort and an OHIO insignia on the medallion of the hat.
However, Boyer said there won't be any major changes anytime soon.
“There’s something to be said about tradition that carries through from one thing to the next,” Krause said.
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