Hatmakers

[skillbilly]

Prior to joining the Lounge, I was only aware of Stetson and Dobbs as makers of quality hats. Now I have been introduced to, what I fear will become an obsession, the world of Borsalino. Who were some of the other hatmakers back in the day and what set them apart from the others?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I'd imagine that sooner rather than later, you (and everyone else) will be able to find a resource guide here: http://www.thegoldenera.net/


In the meantime, there are plenty of folks in this Lounge who can help you right now.

.

 

[besdor]

Hat Makers of the past

What sets apart hatters of the past to the workers of today was the skill that they had years ago . It was a craft that was learned and past down from generation to generation . A lot of that hand skill is lost today and is mastered by only a few .
Big factories such as Stetson and Borsalino employed thousands of people who made the hats largely by hand. There were many different departments in the factories and each person had a skill . Today ,a large part of the process is automated . Blocking was done by hand as was flanging the brim . Today , many hats are flanged by machine on metal flanges ( a big nono) . Years ago ,it was all wood .
And as we all the quality was much better back then . Look for hats such as Dunlap ,Knox , Schoble , Mallory for the older better hats . You won't be dissapointed .

Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

 

[skillbilly]

Thanks for the tips! This gives me a good foundation to start from.

 

[jamespowers]

And as we all the quality was much better back then . Look for hats such as Dunlap ,Knox , Schoble , Mallory for the older better hats . You won't be dissapointed .

I'll add Cavanagh, Dobbs, Portis, Resistol, Swann and Elis. These are all vintage brands you will find that are higher quality hats. :cheers1:

Regards,

J

 

[squid]

I'd imagine that sooner rather than later, you (and everyone else) will be able to find a resource guide here: http://www.thegoldenera.net/


In the meantime, there are plenty of folks in this Lounge who can help you right now.

.

I have made the offer to collect and organize the data. Or is someone is already doing that I would be happy to assist. I have already started combing through old messages here for info.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Excellent! Glad to hear it!

I'm gathering together photos of vintage suits that I've posted here in the past. I'll be sending the photo links to the "Suits" bartender, Matt Deckard, so that he may put them in a Visual Reference Gallery/Library at www.thegoldendera.net.

It's a lot of work for Matt and everyone else that wants to participate, but the results will be well worth it. I don't think there's any other kind of permanent reference source like it on the Web.

.

 

[squid]

In my combing across the board today I found the following vintage hatmakers. Does anyone have any others to add?

Adam
Barbisio
Biltmore
Borsalino
Bradford
Brooks Brothers
Cavanagh
Cervo
Champ
Christies
Churchill
Disney
Dobbs
Duff
Dunlap
Elis
Etchinson
Gage
Gelot
Herbert Johnson
Knox
Lee
Locke
Mallory
Marathon
Panizza
Pilgrim
Portis
Resistol
Robert Hall
Sarnoff
Schoble
Stetson
Swann
Wormser