Figure 1.--This unidentified America boy wears a checked blouse with a scalloped collar with uncordinated long pants. His bow has been tinted pink but may represent red. We suspect that this probably represents the actual color. He holds a clasic broad-brimmed sailor hat. The portrait is not dated, but was probably taken in the late-1850s.

There were related sailor styles to the wide-brimmed sailor hat. The broad-brimmed sailor hat was just one style of sailor hat. There were two others with neorrower brims. One was the boater which may have been influenced the wide-brimmed sailor hat. There were wide-brimmed hats worn earlier, but they were not sailor hats. The boater was a style actually worn by Royal Navy sailors--or at least a style that led to what evolved into the boater. The boater brim was a kind of medium brim. There was also a sailor hat woth a narrow brim. We see boys wearing this style, more in England than America, but it was not as common as the wide-brimmed sailor hat. We see a number of English boy wearing these narrow brim hats, but not very many American boys. Another type of broad-brimmed hat was the cowboy hat or Stetson which seems to have had entirely different origins, we think originating from Spanish styles developing in the Pampas and Llanos of South America. Unlike the wide-brimmed hat and boater, however, the cow boy stetson is a style we do not see see girls wearing. They were commonly worn only by men and occasionally boys.

Sailor Hats

While the wide-brimmed sailor hat may have originated in England and appeared later in America, it was very popular in the 1880s-1900s. We notice many American boys wearing sailor hats. It was a hat style specifically for children. Both boys and girls wore them. No other hat style was especially common for younger boys. There were many cap styles specifically for boys, but hat styles were somewhat less common. Several hat styles were worn over time, but the most common was a wide-brimmed style mostly worn by younger boys. There were variations in styles of these sailor hats, both the brim and the crown. Some of the brims were very large. For some reason the younger boys seem to have had the hats with the largest brims. Mamy hats had trim around the brim. There were both flat and rounded crowns. They were commonly made with chin straps and streamers. The way the photographs were posed, the streamers were often not visible. They were often worn with sailor suits, but were also worn with many other juvenile styles. These included both Fauntleroy suits tunic suits. They were also wirn with just blouses during the summer. The broad-brimmed sailor hat was just one style of sailor hat. There were two others with neorrower brims. One was the boater which may have been influenced the wide-brimmed sailor hat. There were wide-brimmed hats worn earlier, but they were not sailor hats. The boater was a style actually worn by Royal Navy sailors--or at least a style that led to what evolved into the boater. The boater brim was a kind of medium brim. There was also a sailor hat woth a narrow brim. We see boys wearing this style, more in England than America, but it was not as common as the wide-brimmed sailor hat. We see a number of English boy wearing these narrowbrim hats, but not very many Amerivan biys.

Stetson Cowboy Hats

Another type of broad-brimmed hat was the cowboy hat or Stetson. which seems to have had entirely different origins, we think originating from Spanish styles developing in the Pampos and Llanos of South America. Unlike the wide-brimmed hat and boater, however, the cow boy stetson is a style we do not see see girls wearing. They were commonly worn only by men and occasionally boys. American boys wore the same hat styles as worn in Europe. The one destinctive style was the cowboy hat. The cowboy hat as we know it today seems to have appeared in the 1860s. This is the same time as the Civil War and may have evolved out of the uniforms of calvary units. The classic cowboy hat was made by the Stetson company. This American classic is now rarely seen except in some of the Western states. American boys now only want to wear baseball caps.

Created: 12:31 AM 10/6/2017
Last updated: 12:31 AM 10/6/2017