1944: The Men of St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School

Dear Readers,

It’s that time again… due to popular demand, we have an 8th installment of WWII-era photos featuring the jockstrap-clad pre-flight training school cadets at St. Mary’s College in California. You can view the first one here, with links to all the rest at the bottom of this post. This installment focuses on those who trained in 1944 – 80 years ago. These men enlisted to fight against a dictator, as opposed to our current situation, where we are all contending with living under one.

I first became aware of these black and white 5″x7″ triptych photos several years ago. Listings turn up on auction sites frequently, where the photos are often accompanied by the index card used to record the physical training progress of the cadet.

The earliest photos (from June 13, 1942) feature the men completely nude, but all subsequent photos feature the cadets in jockstraps, standing behind some sort of grid fencing to better detect posture misalignment and spinal curvature.

There is still some confusion between these photos and the Yale / Ivy League posture pics, since the Navy photos were sometimes used to illustrate stories about the Yale pics. Note that all of these images contain a visible U.S. Navy / St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School placard, even if they have been cropped out in some posts. Similarly the Yale University photos are identified as such within the frame of the photos:

Fortunately for us, multiple photos of some cadets have surfaced, allowing for comparisons of their training progress:

And while there is a lack of ethnic diversity, there are a variety of body types.

My collection now includes over 900 jpegs of different cadets. While some of these men did perish during WWII, the largest majority that I have researched lived to ripe old ages.

Any surviving cadets would now be over 100 years old. Last year, I discovered one who passed away in 2022 at the age of 103.

One thing these young men have in common, as they were documented in timeless photos of their physical prime: they were far from home, training to fight for their country.

At this time of year, 80 years later, we again salute The Greatest Generation for their fine forms and dedication.

See more here:
Men of St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School
More Men Of St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School
WWII Boys of Summer: St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School
80 Years Ago: The Men Of St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School
Christmas At St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School, Pt. I
Christmas At St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School, Pt. II
Christmas At St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School, Pt. III
The Yale Posture Photos: James Franciscus
The Yale Posture Photos: Bill Hinnant