Figure 1.-- This CDV was taken at the Studio of A & G Taylor, London about 1880. This suggests that boys were wearing bowler hats in the 1880s. The subject is unidentified. The bowler hat was unusual, but not unkown for a boy this age. Much more common were sailor hats and caps. Note the heavy embroidery on the jacket and knee pants. Image courtesy of the MD collection.

The first bowler hat was created for English landowner, William Coke, in order to protect his head from low branches while out shooting on his Norfolk estate. In 1849, in the St James shop of London hatters, he tested its durability by stamping his foot on it twice--when the hat remained undamaged he happily bought it for 12 shillings. The bowler was considered very stylish in the late 19th century. It was primarily a man's style. But boys did wear them. I'm not sure when boys began wearing them, but we notice portaits as early as the 1870s. Workers in their flat caps came to see the bowler hat, or billycock as it was called, as a sign of aithority. One English fashion historian writes, "On Liverpool docks ... a bowler represented authority, and this particular bowler had an eye beneath it which peered around corners. When the dockers brewed up illicitly in their cans, the hat leapt from its hiding place and a foot beneath it kicked the cans to kingdom come." [Mather] The bowler was not just worn by men. While it was not a major boys' style, some boys did wear it. The image here shows that it was being worn by boys in England during the 1880s. Some American boys as young as 12 years in the late 19th and early 20th century also wore bowlers. An example here is Harry E. Trolich in 1877. More commonly the bowler was worn beginning about 14 years of age, but as seen here there were quite young boys ho wore them. Often with their first long pants suit, but boys still in knee pants wore them as well. We are lest sure about trends in other countries.

Invention

Many styles developed without any actual inventor, at least that we know of. For bowler hats, however, we know just how they originated. The first bowler hat was created for English landowner, William Coke, in order to protect his head from low branches while out shooting on his Norfolk estate. In 1849, in the St James shop of London hatters, he tested its durability by stamping his foot on it twice--when the hat remained undamaged he happily bought it for 12 shillings.

Chronology

The bowler was considered very stylish in the late 19th century. I'm not sure when boys began wearing them, but we notice portaits as early as the 1870s. We note quite a number of boys wearing bowlers in the late 19th century. A good example is an Dick Donnely, an American boy about 1870. Another example is an unidentified American boy about 1880.

Man's Style

The bowler was primarily a man's style. Workers in their flat caps came to see the bowler hat, or billycock as it was called, as a sign of aithority. One English fashion historian writes, "On Liverpool docks ... a bowler represented authority, and this particular bowler had an eye beneath it which peered around corners. When the dockers brewed up illicitly in their cans, the hat leapt from its hiding place and a foot beneath it kicked the cans to kingdom come." [Mather]

Boy's Usage

The bowler was not just worn by men. Boys did wear them. While it was not a major boys' style, some boys did wear it. The image here shows that it was being worn by boys in England during the 1880s. Some American boys as young as 12 years in the late 19th and early 20th century also wore bowlers. An example here is Harry E. Trolich in 1877.

Social Convention

We are unsure at this time as to social class conventions. We note the bowler being worn by the wealthy, including kings and aristocrats. We are less sure about the boys wearing them.

Age

We note some younger boys wearing bowlers. More commonly the bowler was worn beginning about 14 years of age, but as seen here there were quite young boys ho wore them. Often with their first long pants suit, but boys still in kneepants wore them as well.

Countries

Bowler hats were worn by boys in many countries. We note bowlers being worn in England and America. We do not know that they were especially popular here. More likely it is just that we have a more substantial archive for these countries. We also note being wormn in Belgium, France, Germany, and Italy. We are lest sure about trends in other countries, but believe that they were worn in other countries as wel, but our information is limited in many countries because of our small archives outside of the major countries. We do not yet have country information as to chronology, conventions, styles, and other matters.

Sources

Mather, Geoffrey. "Capped for England" BBC Radio 4, 2001.

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Created: March 18, 2003
Last updated: 11:08 PM 8/31/2007