Just what I needed...

[Lee Lynch]

I'm pleased to say that on the heels of my recent finding of a great dark Navy Blue 40's suit,(photos soon, it's on layaway..), I have now stumbled on a perfect match for it.

We were rummaging at the Forestwood Antique Mall here in Dallas, and they had a recent acquisition of men's hats. They were all the same size, and I just had a feeling that they had come from the same estate. I was as always about to give up on all these 7 1/8's when I put one on and it fit!( I'm 7 1/4).
It is a Dark Navy Blue Knox with 2 3/4" brim, in outstanding shape. Needs a cleaning, but on my head this thing looks new, guys. I'm pretty new to this, so I thought I was purchasing a non-vintage fedora.
Actually, it was retailed from Dreyfuss and Son in Dallas, and they were open in Dallas from 1911 to 1956.

This darker pic actually shows the true color of the hat...next to my dark green vintage suit, it looks black.

Here is the Knox Label and inside lining...

Here is the Dreyfuss and Son Stamp...

And as a bonus to me at least, the original price tag from Dreyfuss and Son, showing the original purchase price of $20, is still inside the sweatband. I just carefully moved the band back into place...

I'm very pleased. For $35, this was a fine deal...

 

[Stoney]

Very Sweet Lid.

Can you post a closeup of the bow treatment and the liner?

 

[Lee Lynch]

Thanks Stoney!

Here's the Bow and the liner...

The liner is hardly yellowed at all, which is one of the things that made me think I had a newer hat..

 

[feltfan]

The liner is hardly yellowed at all, which is one of the things that made me think I had a newer hat..

Yeah, newer. You're a funny guy.
It's in great shape, though. Love that bow.
I note there's an interesting corrugation on
the leather sweatband in the back.

You 7 1/4 guys have no idea how you torture us
fatheads. I'm a 7 1/2 LO. If I found a treasure trove
of top make 40s fedoras in size 7 3/8 LO I would buy
them all and stretch them. But if you're a 7 1/4, you
can afford to wait till the next one shows up. Sigh.

 

[Stoney]

You see that odd twist in the center of the bow there...

It looks a lot like this one from a 1930's Knox, which I unfortunately lost the bid
on today. [huh]

I also have a Francato Capello hat with a similar bow knot, the Capello has a 2" brim and quite a bit of taper in the crown. I'm thinking that both your hat and mine might date from the 1930s. I'd be interested to hear what some of the loungers that are familar with hats of that period have to say.

Here is a picture of the Capello.

 

[tonyb]

Ya know, Lee, if those other hats at that antique mall are anywhere near as nice as that Knox, and are priced more or less the same, I'd bet you could easily turn them over for a decent profit, and make a few guys a little bit happier in the process.

 

[scotrace]

Great find!
That hat looks 1920's to me. Anyone else think so?

 

[tonyb]

Great find!
That hat looks 1920's to me. Anyone else think so?

Hmmm ...
Is that a Cavanagh edge? Or whatever Knox called their version of it? If so, when did Knox start producing 'em? (Brad?)
Or is it an overwelt? (Lee?) It's hard for my tired old eyes to tell from the photos.
And 20 bucks was a bunch of money back in the 1920s, and even through the '30s, wasn't it? Would that hat have cost that much back then? Or is that more typical of 1940s or even '50s prices?
Of course, some people didn't have such a rough go of it during the Depression. They may not have lit their cigars with 20-dollar bills, but they had 'em to spend on hats, I'd imagine.
So it beats me. Love the style, though, no matter its vintage.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

was Dreyfus and Son a big/well known store? That's where my Tom 'N Jerry came from.

bk

 

[Lee Lynch]

Thanks for the input ,guys!. It's exciting to me that it may be a 20's or 30's hat!
Wow!

 

[DOUGLAS]

That Blue Knox is special. Nicely done.:eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[Snrbfshn]

What type of edge is it?

(I edited post to fix pictures)
It looks as if it's double stitched. Is that right? This hat looks very, very close to my recently acquired Knox Tom 'n' Jerry:
http://new.photos.yahoo.com/jtban1/album/576460762392657274/photo/294928804267226070/0
http://new.photos.yahoo.com/jtban1/album/576460762392657274/photo/294928804267217139/1
Note the double stitching with an almost-metallic thread:
http://new.photos.yahoo.com/jtban1/album/576460762392657274/photo/294928804267201566/3
Can you post pix of your brim edge? I wonder whether these are the same/similar hats with different liners and sweats?

Oh yeah - you got a steal.

 

[Dinerman]

Looks like your hat has COMFIT, a revolutionary sweatband process that looks cool while actually doing very little.

I'd say that's a '30s hat.

My knox has an edge that's like an overwelt, but with no stitching. It's like a cavanagh edge without the fade.

here's the lining in mine. Strikes me as very similar, other than that your hat cost 20 new, while mine cost 15.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

pics not loading, snrbfshn. links are to your email account.

bk

btw. beware when the comfit sweatband goes bad. That yella stuff in the back is disgusting to touch . . . (am i thinking of the right sweatband??)

 

[Dinerman]

are you talking about the foam padding behind the corruations?
mine seems find, what happens to it over time?

 

[Baron Kurtz]

One of mine (now passed to a new owner) had yellow foam padding at the back of the sweatband. It had begun to degenerate and was a seething mess of semi-dissolved foam. Very horrible to put ones fingers into . . .

bk

 

[patrick1987]

(Shudder) Rubber gloves help.

 

[Lee Lynch]

Baron,

Yes, Dreyfuss and Son was well-known, and the onwer actually built a club in the White Rock area of Dallas (where I live!) for his employees to enjoy themselves in, which burned down last year .

I don't know what "self-welting" is, but the brim comes to an unsewn bump that is not sewn..

 

[aliados]

Great find!
That hat looks 1920's to me. Anyone else think so?

Not for a $20 original selling price -- the style looks early thirties, but the price, IMHO, is more recent.

 

[Lee Lynch]

Snrbfshn and Tonyb,

Here is a closer pic of the brim.

As you can see there is no visible stitching. It just comes to a bump. What is this called?

It has a high crown, if that helps to peg a time period...

Aliados,

Thanks for your input. As I've said, I'm not experienced with these things, but I, too, am motivated to think that $20 would have been awefully high for the 20's.