My new Bowler

[Lorne]

Hello All,

I decided to purchase a bowler. Don't ask me why, I lot of what I do does not bear close examination.

Any way, I got this one. The interior of the hat is marked J.H. Ellis, Troy, New York and has the original owner's initials, "ERR" in gold letters. It also has a "The United Hatters of America" label in it (which I am trying to use to date the hat).

The felt was in marvelous condition but the ribbon on the bound brim and sweat band were shot.

A quick trip to Salmagundi (more on them later), replaced both.

One thing I didn't realize is how hard bowlers are to work on. The brim ribbon and sweat both had to be replaced by hand as you can't use machines on the sweat due to the hat's stiffness and you can't on the ribbon because the brim is a continious curve.

The crown ribbon was a bit battered but I left it on. Its got that fraying in the bow and I wanted to keep it original.

By the way, Salmagundi uses a vegetable dyed sweat band. It cost more but its worth it. It looks better and is much more comfortable than the black ones you see around.

Anyway, the results are below:

 

[JonnyO]

J.H. Ellis Men's Furnisher, Hatter and Tailor was at 364 River Street in the Fulton Square section of Downtown Troy. I wish I had more info to offer. Thanks for the post, I enjoy seeing a piece of history from where I live. Can I ask for a better picture of the logo?

 

[Lorne]

I found that too. The store no longer exists. A picture of the area shows where it once stood is now a park.

Here is a better shot of the logo:

 

[JonnyO]

Thanks for the close up. You're correct, Troy Riverfront Park has taken the buildings spot. Ellis' building was torn down with many other beautiful buildings in the 70's when the city caught the "Urban Renewal" bug.

 

[ofcoursemyhorse]

They did amazing work on the brim ribbon.

 

[splintercellsz]

Very nice!

 

[Lotsahats]

Hey, Justin! How's Uncle Sugar treating you? Good to see you.

 

[SALMAGUNDI]

Thank You! A few hours of hand sewing it on along with half a dozen broken needles and a bit of blood from getting poked each (all in a days work right).., but indeed we think it came out splendid. As hard and stubborn as those old brims are on the older Bowlers; when you finish one up (as far as a new bound edge goes anyway) and it looks damn good after all is said and done - it really makes you feel like a Hero.
Besides, Lorne is one picky fellow with his hat restoration (as everyone should be of course), so we had no choice but to make it perfect.
Cheers!
Jessen

 

[Lorne]

"Besides, Lorne is one picky fellow with his hat restoration (as everyone should be of course), so we had no choice but to make it perfect"

I am aways right, except for that one time I thought I was wrong when I wasn't.