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Paging Fred Astaire! A display of top hats belonging to Reginald Borgia, former Vice President of the Hat Corporation of America, a premier American hat manufacturer in Norwalk in the 1930s-1970s, is on exhibit at Norwalk's Lockwood Mathews Mansion. Mr. Borgia started to work at East Norwalk's Van Zant Street factory as a teenager and concluded his hat business career as President of Kangol, Inc.
Dating from the 1860s through the 1890s, the Hat Corporations collection of vintage and antique top hats was sent to stores throughout the country as displays for special events such as centennial celebrations. Mr. Borgia inherited the collection when he retired in 1975. Several top hats and hatboxes from the LMMM collection are also featured.
President Lincoln was known for wearing his signature stovepipe hat. Before he became president, Lincoln practiced law and was said to put important legal papers, such as contracts and court notes, inside his hat for safe keeping.
English haberdasher John Hetherington wore the first top hat in 1797, and according to a newspaper account at the time, caused quite a stir for doing it: Several women fainted, children screamed, dogs yelped, and an errand boy's arm was broken when he was trampled by the mob. Hetherington ended up in court for wearing a tall structure having a shining luster calculated to frighten timid people.
When Prince Albert started wearing one in 1850, the top hat took off and became the fashion. By wearing them, gentlemen of the era made both a fashion statement and a statement of their self-importance. From 1850 to 1900, men such as LeGrand Lockwood (as in Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum) wore top hats for business, leisure and formal occasions.
Felted beaver skin, which was waterproof, became the preferred material for top hats; however, the excessive demand nearly wiped out Americas beaver population by 1900. Mercury had to be used when hats were manufactured with cheaper furs like rabbit. As a result, workers in poorly ventilated factories became ill with mercury poisoning, which was dubbed Mad Hatter Syndrome. Hence the phrase "mad as a hatter." By the early 1900s, mercury was banned from hat factories.
Top hats, also known as toppers," came in a variety of heights from 6 to 8 inches. The taller models were known as stovepipes or chimney pots, largely because they resembled the cityscapes of the 1800s dotted with factory smokestacks.
Regardless of the style of hat, men from all social strata would not be seen in public without wearing one well into the 1960s. And of course, no one wore one quite like Fred Astaire. The LMMM exhbit is on view until June 30, from noon to 4 p.m. Admission is $6-$10 for tours. For more information, visit the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum website.
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