Driza-Bone
Encyclopedia
Driza-Bone, originating from the phrase "dry as a bone", is a trade name for the company making full-length waterproof riding coats and apparel. The company was established in 1898 and is currently Australian owned and manufactures its products in Australia. The trademark of Driza-Bone was first registered in 1933.

This style of coat originated in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 as workwear for stockmen. The coats were developed to protect horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...

 riders from the rain and feature straps that hold the coat to the rider's leg.

History

In the late 1800s, a Scot
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 named Edward Le Roy emigrated to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. He was able to manufacture oilskin
Oilskin
Oilskin can mean:*A type of fabric: canvas with a skin of oil applied to it as waterproofing, often linseed oil. Old types of oilskin included:-**Heavy cotton cloth waterproofed with linseed oil.**Sailcloth waterproofed with a thin layer of tar....

 rainwear for use by sailors on sailing ships in the local waters at the time. The garments were originally constructed from the lightweight sails of the sailing ships. The waterproofing of the clothing was by application of linseed oil
Linseed oil
Linseed oil, also known as flaxseed oil, is a clear to yellowish oil obtained from the dried ripe seeds of the flax plant . The oil is obtained by cold pressing, sometimes followed by solvent extraction...

 to the cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

. T. E. Pearson, the son of E. J. Pearson who started Pearson Soap in Hamilton
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...

, New Zealand, took a consignment of Leroy Coats to Australia. Stockmen at the time had gathered news of this garment from sailors who had subsequently left sailing to work on the land. Because the garments were flammable around campfires, T. E. Pearson worked on developing a new formula for sealing the coats. He did this in the backyard shed of his home in Kangaroo Street, Manly. Pearson subsequently in partnership with Leroy registered the trademark. T.E. died in 1964 and is buried in Frenchs Forest
Frenchs Forest, New South Wales
-Commercial areas:Forestway shopping centre is at the intersection of Forestway and Warringah Roads. During the 1960s and 1970s, this centre had the name Arndale...

, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

.

Over time, changes were made to the original design in the order of:
  1. longer coat for horse riding
  2. fantail in the back of the coat to cover the saddle
  3. wrist straps to secure the sleeves and stop the arms from getting cold
  4. leg straps to stop the coat from flapping around


As time went by, the linseed oil (while proving satisfactory for waterproofing) went hard and cracked in the hot summers. Le Roy and T.E. Pearson (of Pearson's Sandsoap fame) came up with a new proofing technique. This new proofing technique has remained unchanged to the present day.

In late 2008, the brand was brought back into Australian ownership for the first time in many decades. The acquisition brought with it several influential industry figures, including Steve Bennett (founder of Country Road). This resulted in the immediate relocation of both the Eagleby, QLD head office and primary warehousing facilities to Melbourne, VIC.

2000 Olympic Games

Driza-Bone riding coats were worn by the stockmen and stockwomen at the Opening Ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

 in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

. Also, the 2000 Olympic Band members wore Driza-Bone coats especially made for them as band musicians, in which the sleeves were made completely differently to the sleeves of the traditional Driza-Bone riding coats worn by the riders. The red, white and blue colours of the Driza-Bone coats for the band members were also different from the usual colour of the Driza-Bone coats. Also, all the medal presenters during the 2000 Summer Olympic Games wore Driza-Bone coats.

Stage musical

Driza-Bone coats were also worn by the cast members of the 2002 theatre musical "The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man From Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular, which was based on Banjo Paterson's poem The Man from Snowy River, was a very popular musical theatre production which toured Australian capital cities twice during 2002....

". These were designed by the bush/rural clothing enthusiast and designer, Robert Peron, who is a major figure in attempting to have the Driza-Bone accepted as a true fashion item far beyond its status as an Australian icon — Driza-Bones not having entered the fashion lexicon as yet.

APEC Australia 2007

Driza-Bone coats have recently made an appearance at the 2007 APEC Summit
APEC Australia 2007
APEC Australia 2007 was a series of political meetings held around Australia between the 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation during 2007...

in Sydney. The 21 attendees posed in the group photo wearing Driza-Bone attire. According to an official statement, Mr Howard selected Driza-Bone as the national outfit "with counsel and good advice" from his wife, Janette, and the APEC taskforce.
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