Our Nude Path......Then & Now

History of Nudism

History of Nudism

The history of nudism goes back many centuries. Touching lightly on some of the time lines and other significant factors, this will be an overview of social nudity during the times of the early Greeks to modern European and American cultures

In the early times before Judeo-Christian-Moslem concepts were brought about, most of the tropical and temperate climates of the world were nothing more than one big nudist colony. Of course, Calvin Klein hadn’t been born yet. Public nudity was common in ancient Egypt under Pharaoh Akhen-Aton (1385-1353 BCE). Students in ancient Greece exercised and received instruction while unclad and athletes competed in the nude, as witnessed by the early Olympic Games in Greece. If we did this today, how would you wear the ‘swoosh’? The Greeks and Romans lived in a society of "clothing when necessary", frame of mind. This continued until 393 CE, when the Christian emperor banned the Olympic Games because he considered them Pagan. Probably because he wasn’t getting any royalties.

With the demise of the Ancient Civilizations and the beginning of a religion that stressed the sinfulness of sensuality, nudism was on the decline and body shame was on the rise. Entering in the 16th century, were the Puritans, who strongly viewed nudity as immoral. They were so afraid of the lust that they refrained from bathing, because in their eyes, it promoted nudity. It surely didn’t promote close relationships either as underarm deodorant had not yet been invented.

During the reign of Queen Victoria, a period of sexual repression began which spread throughout much of the English-speaking world. At the height of the Victorian Era, it was common to cover all legs, even those of pianos and tables, in order to prevent sexual arousal. Never thought a Steinway could be so exciting. Bathing suits at the time covered almost the entire bodies of both men and women. Sports Illustrated refused to do a layout.

In Europe, the Renaissance period gave way to an acceptance of nudism as a form of art with such radical thinkers as Benjamin Franklin and Henry David Thoreau. They found benefits in their daily naked walks, or as they were called, "air baths". It was a time of awakening, of shedding stiff Victorian collars and the accompanying values; there came a need for lightness, air, a more natural style of living, as well as less restrictive clothing. In Europe, the Renaissance period had risen the awareness of body acceptance in the field of art.

By the turn of the twentieth century, Europe excelled in its glorification of nudism as an art. Organized naturism was called Freikörperkultur (Free body culture) in Germany, the country of its origin. Is this how Volkswagen got their idea? German sociologists Neinrich Pudor, regarded as the "father of nudism." wrote a book “The Cult of the Nude” promoting naturism. By 1903, Freilichtpark (Free-Light Park), the first known nudist club, was opened by Paul Zimmerman near Hamburg,Germany.

By 1929, immigrant Germans and visiting Germans brought this lifestyle to America. Kurt Barthel, one of those immigrants, founded the American League for Physical Culture. Members Reverend Ilsley (Uncle Danny) Boone, and family are recognized as the first leading family of nudism in America.

In the 1930's on one particularly hot summer, thousands of men on Long Island NY disobeyed the law and went topless. Was this the beginning of ‘macho’? The law was changed in 1936 to decriminalize toplessness among men. In 1933, the concept of social nudism received national attention in North America with the forming of The National Nudist Conference. It later became the American Sunbathing Association. By the mid 1930's there were approximately eighty nudist camps across America.

Over the years, police raids on nudist groups became less frequent. One of the last occurred in Michigan in 1956. A Christian radio evangelist had campaigned to close down the Sunshine Gardens Nudist Resort. After a series of court battles, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that naturists had a right to practice nudism within private resorts.

Jumping to the present, it is satisfying to see that naturist groups are active in most of the countries around the world, as individual as the places they inhabit. With all that has been championed for, the United States still has a distance to go to enjoy the personal freedoms that Europe has enjoyed for decades. Modern nudism has accelerated in Germany and France. A nudist resort city on the Mediterranean, Cap d' Agde, now exists in France. Nudity in general has become acceptable in Denmark ,The Netherlands and Germany.

Our general spirit in world naturism is one of optimism and vitality. We need the same spirit to grow here in our United States, where we have always thrown off oppression and embraced our freedom of life, however we choose to live it.