Help Me Identify This Hat

[Slouch-Hat]

Well, I guess it could be a six inch crown. I punched it out and used a ruler to gauge the height. The very apex of the crown looks to reach six inches when I eyeball it. Thanks for the great pictures!

 

[thunderw21]

I'd say early to mid-1950s. I've a Royal Stetson with the same dimensions as the one in question. Though I'm no expert, I could very well be wrong. It's hard to tell from just a felt body.

 

[Stoney]

Well it would have looked like this if from the 1920s-30s:

May have looked like that one, maybe not. Here are some examples from late 20s and 30s that are not quite as stingy.

There was as much variation in style then as now. I'm not ruling out that this hat is that old. It could very well be early 1950s as well.

Does anyone know when they started making hats with a mode or cav edge? If not until 40s then
it would rule out late 20s and the 1930s.

 

[jamespowers]

May have looked like that one, maybe not. Here are some examples from late 20s and 30s that are not quite as stingy.

There was as much variation in style then as now. I'm not ruling out that this hat is that old. It could very well be early 1950s as well.

Does anyone know when they started making hats with a mode or cav edge? If not until 40s then
it would rule out late 20s and the 1930s.

There was some variation but the brims were not as wide as those in the 1940s.
Brad provided patent information that dated the first appearance of the Cavanagh edge to 1913. The patent was updated in 1931 if I remember correctly. So the cavanagh edge is quite old and has been around long enough to have existed in the 1920s-30s.

 

[Brad Bowers]

To add to what jamespowers wrote, the only hats with Cavanagh Edges prior to 1930 would be Crofut & Knapp, Dobbs (probably), and after 1928, Cavanagh. After the patent expired is when you get the explosion of Cav Edges from other manufacturers, and the heyday of the felted edge really begins.

Brad

 

[jamespowers]

To add to what jamespowers wrote, the only hats with Cavanagh Edges prior to 1930 would be Crofut & Knapp, Dobbs (probably), and after 1928, Cavanagh. After the patent expired is when you get the explosion of Cav Edges from other manufacturers, and the heyday of the felted edge really begins.

Brad

Cavanagh was probably making a ton of money on the royalties.
Thanks for adding that. Crofut & Knapp is where Cavanagh started. You had Cavanagh Dobbs for a while as well until they joined the big umbrella Hatco.
The Cavanagh Edge was always expensive though because the body can only be estimated for a specific size with a fixed edge. Mistakes ended up costing bodies in the making of the bodies themselves and the finished products.
Whatever brand your hat is, it is a high quality hat that was produced with much care and craftsmanship. That we can be sure of.

 

[Brad Bowers]

Mistakes ended up costing bodies in the making of the bodies themselves and the finished products.

This is true, but I have a gut feeling that these "Cavanagh Edge Craftsmen" got pretty good at their jobs and mistakes became rare.

Something else, too, is that a mistake on a bigger brim could always be cut off, and the hat body used for either a raw or bound edge. They wouldn't recoup their time and labor losses, but it wouldn't be a complete loss.

Whatever brand your hat is, it is a high quality hat that was produced with much care and craftsmanship. That we can be sure of.

Ain't that the truth!

Brad

 

[jamespowers]

This is true, but I have a gut feeling that these "Cavanagh Edge Craftsmen" got pretty good at their jobs and mistakes became rare.

Something else, too, is that a mistake on a bigger brim could always be cut off, and the hat body used for either a raw or bound edge. They wouldn't recoup their time and labor losses, but it wouldn't be a complete loss.]

Ahhhhhhhhh! Heresy! Leave the Cav Edge alone. No cutting. I'll wear it as an ultra stingy.

 

[Slouch-Hat]

Well, even in its current state, the hat wears like a piece of quality craftsmanship. I've had it for a few years and it's been through more than one rain storm with me. And before I got my hands on it, who knows how long it sat in someone's attic and then the antique store?

Makes me want to hit some more antique stores and look for other old headwear.

You guys have been great!

 

[jamespowers]

Well, even in its current state, the hat wears like a piece of quality craftsmanship. I've had it for a few years and it's been through more than one rain storm with me. And before I got my hands on it, who knows how long it sat in someone's attic and then the antique store?

Makes me want to hit some more antique stores and look for other old headwear.

You guys have been great!

No problem. Keep taking pictures of hats like that.

 

[Slouch-Hat]

Will do. I think it's time to visit some more consignment shops and such.