Happy Hunting…
Bonnets & Hats -- Part I
by Cheryl York-Cail

     Since prehistoric times people have worn some type of head covering. No doubt the first head coverings were animal skins worn for warmth; however, from early on, people were probably wearing headgear for other reasons. Just as native Americans wore feathered bonnets to show their rank or for adornment.
    In many cultures the idea that a woman should have her head covered outside of her home became the tradition. In the early days of Christianity a modest woman would keep her hair (considered her crowning glory} covered. In paintings depicting medieval ladies they are usually shown wearing some type of head covering such as a veil, the hemin (cone-shaped hat), a snood, or the wimple. The wimple, in fact, was preserved until modern time as part of the traditional nun’s habit, and the snood has been revived in some form in several periods.
    In the early days of this country ladies still did not venture forth without head covering, for example, the modest little caps of the Puritan women. Hats or bonnets were required for most occasions up to the middle of the 20th century.
    Interesting as the head coverings of such early periods as the medieval or renaissance are both in themselves and in their influence on more modern styles, this article will discuss the bonnets and hats worn by our American forefathers. Naturally the bonnets and hats from the early days of our history are rare, and those few that have been preserved are mostly in museums.
     However, despite the rarity of really early specimens, collecting antique and vintage bonnets and hats is still a popular hobby, and new collectors are still starting to collect. Most new collectors nowadays are concentrating on vintage headgear of the 20th century. Collectors search antique shops, flea markets, shows, auctions, and if lucky -- the attics of elderly relatives.
    Sometimes one is lucky to find an old bonnet dating from the 1800s or early 1900s. Often these finds need expert restoration, and always need special care and handling in order to preserve them.
    Early bonnets and hats can be hard to date. The collector needs to examine the materials used in the construction of the bonnet and the trim, but many bonnets were re-trimmed by their owners or the owner’s milliner to ‘‘freshen’’ them.
    Collecting hats and bonnets requires that the collector learn about vintage fashion in general as well as hats. Often, collectors hunt for early photographs such as daguerreotypes, ambrotypes and cabinet cards that show women wearing hats with their ensemble. Early fashion magazines such as Godey’s Lady’s Book, trade cards showing hats, and catalogs all are wonderful sources for research plus nice additions to a collection.
    During the colonial period the fashionable ladies looked to Europe for the latest trends in fashion, and to Paris in particular as the fashion capital of the world. Ladies eagerly awaited travelers from Europe with news of the latest fashions, and fashion dolls were sent to the colonies dressed in the latest styles to be copied by dressmakers and milliners. In the early days of our new nation Paris still set the styles for the rich and fashionable.
    During the early 1800s until about 1825 the Empire-style dress was in vogue. Taking the name from the first French Empire, the high waist gowns were popularized by Empress Josephine and other ladies of Napoleon’s court. Hairstyles were short and curly or worn with short curls in front and a chignon in back.
   For formal occasions ladies wore turbans or headdresses of feathers or flowers in their hair, and for informal or day wear the trend was for smaller hats as hairdos were smaller than the styles of the late 1700s. Lingerie hats were popular for indoor wear, as well as under one’s bonnet. Other styles popular during this period include jockey hats, the cottage bonnet, and the long popular poke bonnet. Then as hairstyles started to get taller during the later half of the 1820s, bonnets and hats grew larger to accommodate the elaborate hairdos, and tall wide brim hats became the fashion.
   The next decade, the 1830s, was the height of the Romantic period in literature. Writers and poets such as Lord Byron, Shelley, and Sir Walter Scott influenced this period. In 1837, Victoria ascended the British throne -- beginning the Victorian period. Godey’s Lady’s Book started publishing in 1830 and became an influence on fashion.
     The waistline had started to move down by 1825, and by the 1830s had returned to a “normal” position.  Tight corsets came in again, and skirts became fuller, sleeves larger and dresses had more embellishments. The large elaborate hats of the late 1820s gave way to wide brim bonnets that rose high off the face in a circular shape. They were decorated with lace, ribbons, feather and other trim. At this time the inside of the bonnets began to be trimmed so ladies no longer needed to wear a lingerie cap under their bonnet.
     Hair was worn in high chignons or loops of hair called the Apollo’s Knot, and of course the bonnets and hats of the period must accommodate these styles. For example the French “Bibi” bonnet with a high angled crown sticking up like a chimney was popular. The Apollo’s Knot style fitted easily under the “Bibi”.
     In 1840, Queen Victoria married Prince Albert. The Queen influenced the fashions of the time. The era, which bore her name, was one of respectability and modesty (skirts on piano legs!) The fashions typically portrayed helpless femininity. The skirts got wider and longer; it wouldn’t do to show an ankle. Sometimes the skirts had a small bustle. Bodices were very tight and boned, and sleeves were also long and close fitting, but by the end of the 1840s the sleeves started flaring out from the elbow.
   The high rounded bonnets of the 1830 became lowered and closer to the head with the sides of the bonnet extending low at the neckline, a little veil or curtain hung from the back and covered the neck. By the middle of the 1840s the brim and crown of the bonnet formed one horizontal line which extended out past the face. This modest bonnet is called the “coal scuttle” poke bonnet. Drawn bonnets were also popular during this time. They had frames made from whalebone or cane and the fabric was gathered onto this frame. Some ladies liked to buy untrimmed bonnets, and trim them, themselves using ideas seen in Godey’s or in hat shops. In addition to feathers and flowers, trims such as fake fruit and even birds were used. Although bonnets were the most popular, wide brim hats were worn for country and garden.
    By the 1850s, with ladies skirts growing wider supported by a growing number of petticoats the hoopskirt was invented which consisted of steel circles connected by tapes. This allowed skirts to become even wider. Topping the skirts were tight sloping shoulder bodices with pagoda sleeves. Queen Victoria who loved Scotland made tartan plaids popular in dress material as well as bonnet ribbons. Bonnets that had extended past the face now retreated to about the middle of the head which allowed a clearer view of the face, and the front of the hair to show. White lingerie caps inside for daywear gave way to fancy head dresses trimmed with lace, ribbon and flowers.
   During the 1860s the hoopskirt continued to be popular, although during this decade the shape changed from a dome to a more elliptical shape. The sewing machine had come into common use, and this allowed dressmakers to not only produce more clothing with better economy, but easier to make the fancy touches that Victorian ladies loved. Bonnets changed to an oval shape that came to an upraised center point in front. These “spoon bonnets” were decorated on the underside. By the second half of the 1860s, large high chignons were the popular hairstyle and smaller Empire and the triangular “Fanchon” bonnets were in vogue.
    Hats were starting to grow more popular influenced by the Empress Eugenie’s love of porkpie hats and forward tilting pillboxes. The fashionable young ladies liked them particularly for informal occasions. The bonnet was still considered proper for more formal occasions. Many of the older people thought the new hats were “fast.” The long popular wide brim straw hat was still popular for summers.
    In the 1870s the bustle dress was the style. There were various version of the bustle with names such as the Panniers, Polonaise, Dolly Varden’s, etc. Supposedly these were take-off's from the late 1700s - the days of Marie Antoinette. The country was celebrating its Centennial, and this influenced styles. Popular at the beginning of the 1870s was a short jacket-like bodice called a “basque” which was worn with large skirts with a high rear bustle. By the second half of the decade fashions had changed to a new “pencil slim” silhouette. One of these styles was the long, tightly boned “cuirasse” bodice that extended over the hips. The other was a princess-line dress that had no waist and was cut in gores. Both of these styles featured skirts that were draped in the rear, and had a train. Some of the outfits were so tight that the wearer had a hard time sitting or walking.
    Large chignon hairstyles were still in vogue so small hats and bonnets were still the style. Hats usually tilted forward and bonnets sat further back. By the later half of the decade, hairdos became simpler and larger hats became popular. A smaller version of the Gainsborough hat was popular.
    By the 1880s such stores as Macys, Lord and Taylor, and Bloomindales served the fashionable ladies of New York, while mail-order catalogs such as Montgomery Ward’s helped to revolutionize shopping in the smaller towns and country. Daywear “trains” were gone, but the slim silhouette continued. During the day, skirts were shoe-length. Prior to the middle of the decade the bustle began to revive. It was lower and narrower than the bustles of the early 1870s, but it stuck out farther. However, by the end of the century, the bustle once more retreated and elaborate drapes disappeared as more tailored fashions became the style.
     Many of the hat and bonnet styles of the 1870s continued into the 1880s. Hats got larger, with taller crowns and wider brims. Hat brims often turned up on one or both sides. Some popular styles of the times included pokes, toques, the “Myra” hat, capote bonnets, fedora’s the gable-front bonnet, and the ever-popular Gainsborough.
   The closing decade of the 19th century was known as the Gay Nineties. The silhouette of the 90s was what is referred to as an “hourglass figure”. Tight steel-boned bodices formed extremely tiny “wasp” waists. The huge leg-of-mutton sleeve reached its full size by 1896, and necklines were high and tight, and the whole thing was trimmed with lovely lace. The bustle shrunk at the beginning of the decade, but skirts kept some fullest in the back, and became bell-shaped, sometimes featuring a train. Charles Dana Gibson’s sketches of the “Gibson girl” are a good example of this style.
    During the 1890s, hats that had been gaining in popularity came into their own. Bonnets were worn mostly by elderly or more conservative ladies. Hat trim rose vertically to new heights, and most hats were worn straight on the head instead of forward tilting as in the preceding decade. Small Toque bonnets were popular as were “pinch” back hats, peaked hats, hats with front brims that curved up, and hats with curly brims all the way around. Fedora and sailor hats were popular for sportswear, and for the new craze of bicycling, the tam was popular.
    As the century drew to a close, more women than ever before could look fashionable. Hats and other clothes could be purchased “off the rack” at department stores and through mail order catalogs which allowed middle class women the opportunity to follow the dictates of fashion. More millinery shops sprang up as the country developed a larger middle class. Trimming one’s own hat was also popular for the more “artistic” or those that thought they were.
       It is important to remember that fashions changed more slowly in some areas than others, especially in the early years of the century. Many small towns and country areas might lag well behind the times, and the women were still wearing the styles of earlier years.
     Next month, this column will feature 20th century millinery, and the “Happy Hunting” columnist will be out with her camera looking for hats from our more recent past. There will also be a brief bibliography of books on antique and vintage hats and bonnets for those wanting more information, and in addition a review of a new book: Vintage Hats & Bonnets 1770 - 1970.  This new reference by Susan Langley is more than just a price guide, and is sure to be an indispensable book for the collector of vintage bonnets and hats.

Until next time, “Happy Hunting!”