Dating Your Hat (A Place to Discuss the Age of Your Vintage Hat)

[deadlyhandsome]

Hoping for some help narrowing down the age range. I know that Stetson stopped calling their hats “Royal Stetson De Luxe” and changed to “Stetson Royal De Luxe” at some point, but I can’t find the date. Any ideas?

 

[Hat and Rehat]

I just made an offer on this hat. It’s far too small for me but I just want to own it for a while. I know it’s old, much older than any of my other hats. Any idea when it was made?

It will be a wall-hanger and a touchstone.


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I saw that same crown label in a bowler dated 1900, but 1224 Chestnut is post 1913. Perhaps it was used strictly for bowlers, which should make finding unlined bowlers with something else a way to set the late date limit and frame a window.

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[Hat and Rehat]

I saw that same crown label in a bowler dated 1900, but 1224 Chestnut is post 1913. Perhaps it was used strictly for bowlers, which should make finding unlined bowlers with something else a way to set the late date limit and frame a window.

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I'm sorry. I just enlarged images, and it isn't the same one.

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[Just Daniel]

Have we seen any Royal Stetson Deluxe or Royal Deluxe Stetsons with the vitafelt stamp? That might help at least to ‘47 or so.

Daniel

Hoping for some help narrowing down the age range. I know that Stetson stopped calling their hats “Royal Stetson De Luxe” and changed to “Stetson Royal De Luxe” at some point, but I can’t find the date. Any ideas?

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Have we seen any Royal Stetson Deluxe or Royal Deluxe Stetsons with the vitafelt stamp? That might help at least to ‘47 or so.

Daniel

Bowen’s homburg from WHAYWT thread is a Vita-Felt and it’s a “Royal Stetson” rather than a “Stetson Royal,” but I’m. It sure how much this helps.


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[Just Daniel]

I looked over at the two Vitafelt threads and there are Royals, Imperials, Medalists, and Premiers, but no Royal Deluxe types. Is it possible the Deluxe came later?

My Royal Stetson Vitafelt St Regis is at least pre-Royal Stetson Deluxe St Regis.

While the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence...

How about OPA/OPS tags? Trademark data?

Have we seen any Royal Stetson Deluxe or Royal Deluxe Stetsons with the vitafelt stamp? That might help at least to ‘47 or so.

Daniel

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I looked over at the two Vitafelt threads and there are Royals, Imperials, Medalists, and Premiers, but no Royal Deluxe types. Is it possible the Deluxe came later?

My Royal Stetson Vitafelt St Regis is at least pre-Royal Stetson Deluxe St Regis.

While the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence...

How about OPA/OPS tags? Trademark data?

I posted all I have. Lot numbers are beyond me. I don’t mean to have others do all the leg work, I was just thinking that someone might already know the answer. Thanks for your help.


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[Just Daniel]

It’s fun to look!

Royal Deluxe as early as ‘52, per Vic on the Dating Hat by Liner thread. We would have guessed that, but his confirmation puts a solid pin on the timeline.

I posted all I have. Lot numbers are beyond me. I don’t mean to have others do all the leg work, I was just thinking that someone might already know the answer. Thanks for your help.


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[carouselvic]

the
royal deluxe goes back to the 40's me thinks

 

[Just Daniel]

I think the key is on the Flagship thread. The Royal Stetson Deluxe Flagship appeared in ‘46. The Royal Deluxe Stetson sweat with stars in the crest and Royal Stetson Deluxe liner appears with the oilskin protector here, suggesting a transition during the ‘48-52 period.

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/stetson-flagship.16524/page-4

As Vic points out, there is not a lot of certainty, but with the Flagship we know the Royal Stetson Deluxe label was around in ‘46.

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

^^^interesting discussion gentlemen.
It’s gotten me to take a closer look around. I’ve not looked at the backside of the sweatbands of any Flagships or Vita-Felts for clues. I think i may have a Medalist from back then also. I’ll try and investigate for some more clues.
Hopefully other’s can add insight as well.
B

 

[Hat and Rehat]

I know a past or present Lounger is the author of the source I've been using to date Stetsons. He runs through 4 or 5 different chains of evidence separately. One is the change Stetson made from stand alone quallity ratings in their dress hats to names for a product line. The Stratoliner I have, which I believe to be early in the name recognition approach, reads Royal Stetson Stratoliner. It seems at least plausible that switching to model names and using the previous quality designations differently would coincide with one another.
The earlier hats should then feature the brand name, Stetson, as the flagship of their branding efforts. Stetson would arguably then get top billing, as in Stetson Royal Deluxe. When the individual models became the branding strategy, Stetson as a name receeded to a position more like, by Stetson. Logically it would be consistent for this to also be when Stetson Royal ctringhanged to Royal Stetson. A canvas across Stetson products should strengthen or weaken this hypotheses and perhaps give firm footing to date the bowler before the name lines were introduced.

My source for the above information is one of a series of articles by Warren Todd Huston on dating Stetsons. They are up on a Publius Forum website. I can't presently recall the details, but at some point since reading the dating articles on Pulius, a search of some sort brought me to an old discussion here at the Lounge, and my impression was that W.T. Huston was one of the three or four people discussing a matter. I didn't remember the name at the time, and would have seen him posting under a user name anyway, but something led me to connect the Lounge member with those articles.

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[dr greg]

XXXX John B Stetson, not my size, but first one I've ever seen in Australia, any ideas how old it is?

 

[Frunobulax]

We'd have to see more than that. Interior shots, sweatband markings, lining, tags; that's what will give you an indication of age.

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[dr greg]

not much to tell really, the sweatband is crumbling and imprints faded,

I just thought the style might be a giveaway

 

[BobHufford]

Looks like a ‘70s Tom Mix.

 

[dr greg]

I'm surprised the sweatband has aged so poorly, i have hats from the 40's in better shape!

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I'm surprised the sweatband has aged so poorly, i have hats from the 40's in better shape!

A sweatband from the 1940’s is more likely to be in serviceable condition than a Stetson sweatband from the 1970s or ‘80s. The mighty have fallen, and fallen far.


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[dr greg]

o well, I'll flog it at the local markets, I thought it might have some vintage value

 

[deadlyhandsome]

o well, I'll flog it at the local markets, I thought it might have some vintage value

Have it reblocked to your size, have a new sweatband sewn in, and wear it for the next few decades. It looks to be a 4X which is a fairly modern quality designation (I think it appeared in the 1960s or ‘70s), but if you like stiffer western hats you have the makings of a neat one there.


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