Wisconsin Historical Society collection visit

[buler]

Jimmy makes a great point. How does the depth of your own collection compare to the museums, Buler?

I didn't see their whole collection on this visit. Just those that came up in a search of their database under Fedora and/or Stetson. These were all of the fedoras I found interesting. In comparison, I do have a lot more fedoras. They also have quite a collection of top hats which I will go back and look thru. Not sure on derbys, etc.

Leslie also said they have a lot of uniform (police,fire,cab,etc.) hats in a different collection.

B

 

[buler]

Was a store in Chicago's Palmer House Hotel. Ads indicate they sold a full line of hat manufacturers. !890-1910 range mainly

Aha! Thanks RLK. So those were "retailer" marks in this instance.

B

 

[rlk]

Aha! Thanks RLK. So those were "retailer" marks in this instance.

B

There seem to be quite a few stores selling Dunlap and Stetson in this time frame(from Newspaper ads). Maybe they used the Stetsons for the soft hats and Dunlap for the stiffs[huh].

 

[jimmy the lid]

Aha! Thanks RLK. So those were "retailer" marks in this instance.

B

Maybe, but I'm not so sure -- the Dunlap mark in the hat is essentially the same one associated with Dunlap hats (just an earlier version of the same mark, in all likelihood). Frankly, I think it's the same thing as if Stetson had a store at the Palmer House. So, it's still not clear why the Dunlap mark would exist on a Stetson hat, or why Stetson would allow that to happen. Hmmmmm...[huh]

Check out these photos of the mark used in conjunction with a Dunlap lid (courtesy of buler):

Incidentally, I have never forgiven the new owners of the Palmer House for giving Trader Vic's the boot...:rage:

Cheers,
JtL

 

[rlk]

The store obviously had some official affiliation with Dunlap, however that doesn't mean that was all they could sell. The Stetson is obviously a deep factory embossing while the Dunlap is just a liner and a printed logo on the sweat, both with the Palmer House included and no other addresses so exclusive to this store. The store also sold ladies millinery gifts and umbrellas. If you want to pay money there are lots of Chicago Tribune ads.
Optimo sells some non-Optimo hats and the Stetson Store in NYC sold non-Stetsons in the 1970's when I was there. Hard to know what legal issues were happening 100 years ago.

 

[rlk]

Seems to be some affiliation...

 

[jimmy the lid]

The store obviously had some official affiliation with Dunlap, however that doesn't mean that was all they could sell. The Stetson is obviously a deep factory embossing while the Dunlap is just a liner and a printed logo on the sweat, both with the Palmer House included and no other addresses so exclusive to this store. The store also sold ladies millinery gifts and umbrellas. If you want to pay money there are lots of Chicago Tribune ads.
Optimo sells some non-Optimo hats and the Stetson Store in NYC sold non-Stetsons in the 1970's when I was there. Hard to know what legal issues were happening 100 years ago.

I really wasn't disagreeing with the proposition that a Dunlap & Co. store might have sold other brands of hats -- sounds like your research into period advertisements has confirmed this.

The point I was making is simply this: the Dunlap & Co. logo found on the hat's liner and sweat is not merely the mark of a retailer -- it is the mark for Dunlap & Co., the hat manufacturer. I just find it bizarre that the Dunlap & Co. mark would be placed prominently in a hat made by Stetson. Imagine the opposite scenario, where a Dunlap hat suddenly had a liner with the traditional Stetson logo, simply because it was being sold at a Stetson retail outlet. I just find it a really curious circumstance.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[rlk]

pay per view teaser

Display Ad 1 -- No Title
Pay-Per-View - Chicago Tribune - ProQuest Archiver - Dec 2, 1888
Palmer House Shoe Store,. 179 SATE-T. Does not charge 179 STATES T,E , for style , ... J. B. Stetson Hats, soft and stiff, correct styles, always in stock. ...
All 2 related - Related web pages

 

[zetwal]

Interesting indeed. Thanks for sharing!

 

[hatophile]

Thanks Buler,

Great Hats!

 

[Badluck Brody]

Go figure.... right in my hometown and I hear nothing about it!:eusa_doh:

Coarse I haven't been back in months... Might have to swing by and check it out?

So was it worth the trip to Milwaukee and the hassle with parking (Do I know DT Milwaukee or what?)?

BTW: is Rock Bottom Brewery still around?

 

[buler]

Go figure.... right in my hometown and I hear nothing about it!:eusa_doh:

Coarse I haven't been back in months... Might have to swing by and check it out?

So was it worth the trip to Milwaukee and the hassle with parking (Do I know DT Milwaukee or what?)?

BTW: is Rock Bottom Brewery still around?

Its in Madison, not Milwaukee. There is a Rock Bottom in Milwaukee.

B

 

[BanjoMerlin]

Dunlap published a book called "A Short Treatise on Headwear Ancient and Modern" in 1885. This book was partially informative and partially self-promotional - as were many publications of the time.

Here is page 32 which would seem to answer the question of affiliation of the hat store in the Palmer House. I infer that Dunlap opened the store in about 1882 and that it was a company-owned store that would have been equipped and allowed to apply Dunlap logos as needed.

I'm convinced that the Dunlap logo was added to a Stetson sweatband by the Palmer House in conjunction with the replacement of the liner. The Dunlap logo on the sweatband is off center but the Stetson logos are embossed on center. I think it likely the liner and sweatband logo were added to a customer-owned hat when it was brought in for service.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Dunlap published a book called "A Short Treatise on Headwear Ancient and Modern" in 1885. This book was partially informative and partially self-promotional - as were many publications of the time.


I'm convinced that the Dunlap logo was added to a Stetson sweatband by the Palmer House in conjunction with the replacement of the liner. The Dunlap logo on the sweatband is off center but the Stetson logos are embossed on center. I think it likely the liner and sweatband logo were added to a customer-owned hat when it was brought in for service.

That may well explain it. Great find on the Dunlap book -- do you own it?

 

[BanjoMerlin]

That may well explain it. Great find on the Dunlap book -- do you own it?

It is readily available for download here and other places. LONG out of copyright so no issues there. Since it is free to download it is well worth the money.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Since it is free to download it is well worth the money.

lol lol lol

Thanks for the info.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[Nathan Flowers]

I had a Montecristi from a hat shop called Boynton's in the Palmer House.

Picture: http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/3450/1030369.jpg

 

[Badluck Brody]

Even better, I work only a few blocks away!!

Don't ask me why I was thinking Milwaukee....:eusa_doh:

BTW: Do you know of any other hat shops in Madison besides Sacred Feather?

Thanks Buler!

 

[buler]

Bumping this in hopes of inspiring some of you to check with local museums. There's bound to be some really interesting hats sitting on shelves.

B

 

[RBH]

Good bump Bill.
But dont you think that those hats will need a good brush?