Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1912-11-25
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Idea That Gave America
the Soft Hat
BY Holland.

Henry A Hurlblt, who died in 1897
in the 9Oth year of his age, was the
organizer of the second Of the ma
tional banks chartered under the Ma
tional Banks act ian New York city.
lie was one Of the charter members Of
the Union League Club of New York
in 1863, and for 40 years leading
citizen Of the metropolis.
/ was chatting one day few weeks
ago with a member of the Union
League Club who knew Mr. Hurlbut
well. We were looking at a REPRO
duction OF "a photograph of Henry
Ward Beecher The great clergyman
was pictured forth with the soft
crowned, broadDrimmed black felt hat
which for many years was the only
head piece that he wore.
Henry A. Hurlbut," said this
f~'end. was responsible not only for
Henry Ward Beecher's soft hat. but
states of the soft felt hat, and it was
all due to a curious circumstance in
his own early business life.
Mr.. Hurlbut was a native Of Wind
sor, Conn, the same town in which
When he was q boy they we're Just
beginning the manufacture of hats in
Connecticut, but the industry was con
hned almost entirely to the high
crowned beaver skin hats.
"All gentlemen, everybody, in fact,
except laborers, wore for many years
the white or black high beaver hat
II you viii look at old pictures. paint
cd or engraved. setting forth crowds
upon the public thoroughfares in New
York and other cities in those early
days you will find that every man is
shown wearing a high beaver hat.
THAT was the kind of hat which
Henry A. Hurlbut learned TO make
when a boy. He was a skillful work
man and when a little past 80 years
of age he opened a hat store in New
York city and connected with a little
hat mandatory. He once told me
that his only expectation was that
he would make a comfortable living
at his business
About 1851 Mr. Hurlbut was going
by a newspaper stall outside a book
store near his place of business when
his attention was attracted by what
purported to be a picture Of Louis
Kossuth. who was about to visit the
United States. The projected visit Of
Kossuth TO this country caused al
most as much excitement as did the
projected visit of La Fayette % years
earlier. Kossuth's attempt to free
Hungary from foreign domination
had aroused intense national sympa-
thy in the United States. The picture
of Kossuth which Mr.. Hurlbut saw
represented the great Hungarian as
wearing a soft felt hat, one brim of
which was slightly turned up and the
crown of which was slightly indented
las Mr. Hurlbut turned away from
the picture the idea suddenly flashed
upon him. why not make a hat
something like the one Kossuth
wears? It might prove to be very
popular But when he spoke of this
idea to his partner he was told that
it would be useless to make hats of
that kind for sale. Men i'm the United
States would not wear anything but
the high-crOwned beaver hats, the
partner declared
"Still the idea appealed to Mr. Hurl-
hut He did not have any workmen
whom he thought competent to make
a model of a hat like kossuth's, so
he took OFF his coat, rolled up his
sleeves. blocked out the model of a
soft hat and determined to call it the
Kossuth hat. 1t was entirely at his
own personal risk that he manufac-
tured and offered for sale the Kos
suth hat tt made a tremendous hit
Almost everybody I'm the United
states wanted a Kossuth hat. and
when Kossuth arrived in New York
he was astonished to see so many
men wearing hats similar to his own
THE venture was very profitable
/ financially, and It gave Mr. Hurlbu
his FIRST real start towards fortune
/ II had one effect, however, Of which
/ even he did not dream. For although
/ the peculiar model of hat which Wa
called Kossuth was very popular onl,
for year or two. yet American mel
learned i'm that time how comfortabl
the soft hat was, so that some form
Of soft hat, many of them similar T.
the broad. flat-brimmed hat whicl
Bpecher wore. form that becam
very popular in the South gradual
began to supplant the high beaye
hat for every day wear
Copyright. 1912, by Il. j. Edwards
All rights reservedD
Tomorrow Mr.. Edwards win tell q
"a Story of the Tall Sycamore of tn
Wabash"