There's not much in this world that I love more than a picture like this:
Sombreros On The Bridge
Where did these magnificent hats come from and where did they go? That is a question that intrigues me. There was a time, around the Mexican Revolution, when this huge hat style become so popular, it crossed the border into the U.S.:
January 13, 1906 edition, El Paso Herald.
It wasn't long before the big brim look invaded Hollywood:
Tom Mix and Horses
Buck Jones movie poster
The Monster Brims started to fade after WWII and by the fifties a more conservative, and narrow style, swept the land:
Small brim Nation
But around the early seventies, some of us who grew up admiring those Monster Brims sought them out:
The Razz Band With Hans, 1978
They were hard to find, but it was worth the hunt. Thanks to this post I got contacted by RJ Preston who makes these monster brims for all of you who may want them. Check him out:
RJ Preston's custom made Sugarloaf
"The bigger the brim, the smaller the spread."
—Old Vaquero Saying
Quite a topic to get your head around? Glad you got on top of the story Bob!
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing a Hoss Cartright hat in stores back in 1968.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness for Stetsons.
ReplyDeleteBilly the Kid is said to have favored "sugarloaf" hats. Ahead of his times in fashion!
ReplyDelete"The bigger the brim, the smaller the spread."
ReplyDeleteaka "All hat and no cattle."
Maybe, but the higher the crown, the cooler the dome, in the case of a sugarloaf anyway. 😉
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