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Stetson "The Sovereign Twenty"

MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Stetson Sovereign Twenty. 2 1/2 inch brim. Has almost a velour-like feel. This is the only Sovereign I've seen with sweatband reading "Stetson Beaver Twenty". This may or may not be the original liner. Anyone have a guess? Both liner and sweat have stars instead of maple leaf.
 

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MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
A Western-style Stetson Sovereign Twenty, 2 1/2 inch brim. Has stars in liner and I think maple leaf in sweatband.
 

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MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Stetson Sovereign Twenty from late 50's-early 60's. 2 1/4 brim. Maple leaf on liner and sweatband. This hat was a disappointment to me. The felt is not, in my opinion, as good as earlier 50's Sovereigns. Reminds me of 60's Dobbs Golden Coach garbage.
 

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wsmontana

Practically Family
Messages
522
Location
Montana
Now THAT is one I've been looking for! Most excellent, sir.
Thanks Randy!

I wasn’t planning to keep this hat as it is too small for my 7 3/8 noggin. If you are interested, I’d be happy to send you a link directly once I get it listed. I assume that wouldn’t violate any lounge rules but I’m not sure.

Bill
 

Rmccamey

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,862
Location
Central Texas
Thanks Randy!

I wasn’t planning to keep this hat as it is too small for my 7 3/8 noggin. If you are interested, I’d be happy to send you a link directly once I get it listed. I assume that wouldn’t violate any lounge rules but I’m not sure.

Bill

Thanks, Bill, I'd appreciate it.
 

Short Balding Guy

I'll Lock Up
Messages
9,871
Location
Minnesota, USA
Stetson Sovereign Twenty. 2 1/2 inch brim. Has almost a velour-like feel. This is the only Sovereign I've seen with sweatband reading "Stetson Beaver Twenty". This may or may not be the original liner. Anyone have a guess? Both liner and sweat have stars instead of maple leaf.


Interesting hat. I do not have any answer for you, other than I tried a search on the site. I found only one reference to Stetson Beaver Twenty and it was from 2011 with pics removed. I have seen the stamp on modern black leather sweat Stetson's, but not on earlier hats.

I hope sage wisdom can fill in this mystery as it is a mystery.

Congrats on this and your other special Sovereign Twenties, Eric -
 
Here is a Stetson Sovereign Twenty from the 60's (I think they stopped making the mode edge around 64-65?).

This was an interesting rough project hat. Short Crown around 5" with a 1 7/8" mode edge brim.

So....I stripped out the liner (which was sewn), tags and wind cord....leaving the roan sweat and ribbon. Then I wet blocked on a 51 block......when dry I re-assembled the liner. I decided to re-flange the brim to a very slight curve, almost flat to make the most use of what there was of brim.

I kept the wind chord to place on one of my other hats (I like the look of wind cords on hats).

I chose to NOT crease the crown at all......making this a rather nice soft sort of Derby hat. It really does not look bad that way at all............

Wet and on the block
1673305226660.png


Sweat
1673305370068.png

1673305483630.png

Unique SILVER size tag and price tag that was behind the sweat
1673305574880.png

Liner
1673305669953.png

Finished hat
1673305975312.png
 

MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Stetson Sovereign Twenty, 2 7/8 brim which is a felted or Mode Edge brim, although Mode Edge isn't on sweatband. Liner and sweatband both have stars, and mftg tags are old style, dating hat to about late 40's. The felt on this hat is soft and thick and better than later 50's hats or more to my liking. I rate this as one of my very best Stetsons. Just got it, needs cleaning. Hat has the stub of the Celanese yarn paper listing material in hat, like that on the first hat I showed at top of this page. The split in the liner is on the side instead of at the rear, so I suspect this hat dates to late 40's. Notice in the liner that above the word "Sovereign" is the Stetson logo. In a later version of this liner, the Stetson logo is replaced by a picture of a beaver. This is a sign you have a later hat.
 

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Rmccamey

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,862
Location
Central Texas
That is a great hat, one that is on my bucket list.

Stetson Sovereign Twenty, 2 7/8 brim which is a felted or Mode Edge brim, although Mode Edge isn't on sweatband. Liner and sweatband both have stars, and mftg tags are old style, dating hat to late 40's to very early 50's. The felt on this hat is soft and thick and better than later 50's hats or more to my liking. I rate this as one of my very best Stetsons. Just got it, needs cleaning. Hat has the stub of paper listing material in hat, like that on the first hat I showed at top of this page
 

MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Interesting hat. I do not have any answer for you, other than I tried a search on the site. I found only one reference to Stetson Beaver Twenty and it was from 2011 with pics removed. I have seen the stamp on modern black leather sweat Stetson's, but not on earlier hats.

I hope sage wisdom can fill in this mystery as it is a mystery.

Congrats on this and your other special Sovereign Twenties, Eric -
Based on the fact that this first Stetson Sovereign I've listed has the Celanese yarn tag and that the split in the liner is on the side instead of in the back, I'm dating this hat to the 1940's, so that hat liner might be original to it. It definitely has a 1940's type Stetson logo in that liner. So I have 2 Stetson Sovereign Twentys posted here (the first of them and the last one of them) both of which have the Celanese yarn tag and both have the liner split on the side, so I'm dating these 2 to the late 1940's.
 
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MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Based on the fact that this first Stetson Sovereign I've listed has the Celanese yarn tag and that the split in the liner is on the side instead of in the back, I'm dating this hat to the 1940's, so that hat liner might be original to it. It definitely has a 1940's type Stetson logo in that liner. So I have 2 Stetson Sovereign Twentys posted here (the first of them and the last one of them) both of which have the Celanese yarn tag and both have the liner split on the side, so I'm dating these 2 to the late 1940's.
Having just looked at how the liner is attached on an Imperial Stetson of about the same period, which also used small rectangles of paper to attach liner, I now feel safe in saying this Sovereign Twenty under discussion does have it's original liner.
 
Messages
19,001
Location
Central California
Having just looked at how the liner is attached on an Imperial Stetson of about the same period, which also used small rectangles of paper to attach liner, I now feel safe in saying this Sovereign Twenty under discussion does have it's original liner.


I associate those paper tabs with hats that have been re-blocked or had other work done to them that required the liner to be removed. It was my understanding that the hatter used the tabs to hold the liner in place after completing the work rather than re-sewing the liner. I could be wrong.
 

MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
I associate those paper tabs with hats that have been re-blocked or had other work done to them that required the liner to be removed. It was my understanding that the hatter used the tabs to hold the liner in place after completing the work rather than re-sewing the liner. I could be wrong.
Thanks, Brent. That's not what I want to hear, but I guess I'll have to keep the question open as to if the hat liner is original.
 
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MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,016
Stetson Sovereign Twenty that arrived today. Has maple leaf in both liner and sweatband, but has old style mfg tags, so it dates about 1953. 2 3/4 inch brim. Nice thick felt.
 

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The Lost Cowboy

One Too Many
Messages
1,697
Location
Southeast Asia
Stetson Sovereign Twenty that arrived today. Has maple leaf in both liner and sweatband, but has old style mfg tags, so it dates about 1953. 2 3/4 inch brim. Nice thick felt.
Such a beauty!

I am in love with these wide brimmed Stetson 20s. I've got three 20s but only one wide-brimmed (2 5/8) and I am infatuated with it. The smaller brims are also nice (both of mine are 2 1/4) but the smaller crown that comes with it really loses something in translation. The 20 felt just cries out to be expansive.
 

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