The Loop in Back of Shirts
First of all, this doesn’t apply to garden-variety t-shirts. Surely, you own at least one nice, collared shirt that has this mysterious loop in the middle of your back. We actually have the Navy to thank for the loops on our shirts. Believe it or not, there isn’t a lot of closet space while you’re out at sea, so sailors would have loops on their shirts so they could just hang them on hooks.
College kids in the 1960s also utilized the loops, as they could hang up their shirts and keep them neat and wrinkle-free while at the gym. Today, manufacturers put them on shirts as a sign of class and quality. Also, you may have noticed that young ladies sometimes pull the hooks of boys they like, so there is still a practical reason to have these on our shirts.
