Question about cap

[FedoraFan112390]

This picture is my grandpa's Hack License (AKA, Taxi Driver License) photo, cropped from the license. It was taken sometime between 1950 and 1951. The hat he's wearing is of course a stereotypical Cabbie hat, but I'm curious if:

1) Was wearing that sort of hat mandatory for Cab drivers back then?

and

2) Is it possible he might've liked to wear it from time to time? My mother doesn't remember him wearing any hats, and he was born in 1920--the generation that didn't really wear hats.

I don't know if the "Cabbie with Cabbie hat" stereotype was around in 1950/1951, but if it was it might mean that he was wearing the cap as a goof--But if the stereotype wasn't around then, it might show he had a genuine interest in flat caps.

 

[HatsEnough]

To my knowledge the only "mandatory" head gear for cabbies in the era was if the cab company had a hat with the company logo on it. Think...

Otherwise, I am sure that it was his own hat for his own style and purposes.

 

[FedoraFan112390]

I was just asking because around here that sort of hat has a very stereotypical sort of connotation with cab drivers...And I didn't know if it was because cab drivers back then were required to wear one, which would explain my grandpa wearing it, since he didn't normally wear hats or caps of any kind.

 

[Yeps]

I would guess that when hats were customary, caps were the most convenient to wear when in a car all day. It might have just become tradition.

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Great cap he has on. Caps like Yeps says are easy to wear in a car all day. Caps are a working man's hat or where used for sporting events.