Dobbs Sleuthwork

[Visigoth]

Okay, please help me date this gorgeous Dobbs, which just arrived. Here's the ebay ad:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=52369&item=8275494351

I'm quite proud of the sleuthwork I've done so far. Beneath the sweatband, it says that it sold for $60.00, at Schlesinger's in West New York, NJ. Now, a little research shows that Schlesinger's went under in 1985. So it's at least that early. Now, beneath the size tag, it reads "United Hatters, Cap, and Millinery Workers" -- which, I've discovered, joined the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union in 1983. So, we're back in the early eighties. Okay, so here are some clues you guys can help me with:

It has a Cav edge (which was called the Guild Edge by Dobbs, I'm told -- doesn't say that here); when was that last made? The felt is *lovely* -- as nice as any fifties hat -- but the liner is not sewn in, and is not the quality I associate with early vintage stuff -- rougher, more synthetic. The sweat band is black leather, and the stamped Dobbs logo is straight, not tilted; beneath the logo it says Made in U.S.A. -- which I haven't seen on older Dobbs hats.

Any guesses? I'm thinking late seventies, although it could be earlier. (The seller was probably mistaken in suggesting that it was 50's-60's era, even though the style does look early -- 1 1/8" ribbon, and 1 7/8" brim.) Note that the box in the picture is rectangular -- were these later than the octagonal Dobbs boxes?

 

[Visigoth]

No takers? I'd have thought people here would have been through a few eras of Dobbs lids...

Okay, another try: what about powder? Did they color good hats with powder back in the early eighties, or is that a recent Resistol/Stetson phenomenon? I only say, because I brushed the brim a bit with a (dry) toothbrush -- the brim ended up perfect; the toothbrush darkened a bit, as if taking dye or powder from the hat. Might help determine the age...

(It's actually a great hat; just want to know more about Dobbs; I have another one coming in a few days, in an octagonal box.)

 

[besdor]

Yourhat looks to be from the late 1960's when Dobbs made their famous kitten finish . I doubt was from the 1980's . They stopped using the black boxes years ago . Does the leather says any thing like Dobbs fifteen or twenty ? Is there a body ticket under the leather that you could scan . This would help to date the hat.

Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

 

[Visigoth]

Thanks, Steven. No "25" or the like. (In fact, *none* of my hats have this designation, including a clearly high-end Knox Custom. So I take it that the absence of a number doesn't indicate a bottom-of-the-line hat.) "Kitten finish" would nicely describe this felt. Here's the tag:

 

[besdor]

Thanks for the better picture . As you can see from the paper tag , your hat is from the mid 1980's . The tag in the corner says 1/83 or 11/83 .
A nice hat but not vintage . Enjoy it at this price anyways!!


Steven

 

[Visigoth]

Thanks for the info! Ha -- I'm not *that* great a sleuth, if I missed an actual date.

When was Dobbs thought to have gone downhill, by the way? Is it the ones labelled "Stetson Dobbs" that represent a significant decline? (Is this likely to have been powdered, for instance?)