Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-29
THE PLUG HAT IN THIS COUN-
TRY.
Attempt to Determine First Appear
ance Among Us.

Iie new Iofk sun mas precIpltated
most important matter by asking
who wore the first plug hat. A CORE
spondent from Cincinnati testifies to
the Sun that he wore the first plug hat
90 years ago, and, that it was then
called kossuth hat. He says. "Kos-
suth was then in New York and had
introduced tall (plug) hat, known as
the Kossuth hat" There was a Kos
suth hat in 1852, which is 81 years ago,
but it was far from being a tall
tplug) hat for it was low soft hat,
with a rolling brim, ornamented with
a large ostrich feather which swept
on the left side from the front to the
back This writer recollects being
lifted up by his father ON some public
occasion, when Kossuth appeared,
that he might see the famous Hunga-
rian. He cannot now recall the ocea-
sion. He does not believe that Kos
suth's purpose was to exploit his hat
or, to set fashion, but, he really saw
nothing except Kossuth's hat, to the
great amusement of his father, and he
further recalls that afterward, on
passing a hat store, he saw in the
window a hat displayed which was
GupiiGdte Oh the uffe WOIn by nus
suth, and that his father entered the
shop with him and made his little
heart glad by buying one for him.
He was then a lad of 8 or 10 years
This puts the testimony of this cor
respondent out of court as incompe-
tent and immaterial.
AS matter of fact the plug hat
was then in existence and had been
many years. 1t was tail hat with a
n:srrew Brim, which was slightly
changed from time to time. The right
NJ ne of this hat was silk hat.
Plug" was a slang term for it, just
as "stovepipe' and chimney pot
were. The slang terms were applied
because of the resemblance of the hat
to the articles the names of which
were given to the hat. On February
Is. lS4S--65 years ago-in "MitchelPs
Olympic" was produced a play called
"a Glance at New York" The hero
was a fire laddie of the old volunteer
department, and was played by Frank
Chanfrau The actor wore the CO.'S
tune of the fire laddie of the day, a
picturesque figure in the life of New
York, which was so universal as to
ne Hl-Dttth tiOdStiS tQtht0 i
into the legs of boots, a red flannel
shirt ornamented with many small
pearl buttons and a plug hat Col. T
Aston Brown in his History of the
New York Stage" has this to say
when the play opened and Chan
frau made his appearance, there was |
dead silence in the house. This was |
because the patrons of the |
house were in the habit of welcoming |
every welI-known member of the COM /
pany with applause. But the fact is /
they did not recognize Chanfrau. He |
stood there in his red shirt with his /
fire coat thrown over his arm, the |
stovepipe hat-better known then as !
a "plug"-drawn down over one eye, |
his trousers tucked into his boots,
STUMP Of cigar pointing up from |
his lips to his eye, the soap locks plas
tered fiat on his temples and his jaw |
protuded into a -beastly, half-hu-
man expression of contemptuous fero-
city. Taking the cigar STUMP /
from his mouth and turning halfway
round to spit, he said
81 amt goin' to run wild dat ma,
chine no more
INSTANTLY there arose such a vel
IF recognition-as had never been heard
n the little house before. Ev-
cry man, woman and child recognized
n the character all the distinctive ex-
ternal characteristics of the class"
Here we have the evidence not only |
that the plug hat" was known and
worn IS years ago, but that it had
been so long known previously that il
was recognized as q distinctive fea- |
Lure of the dress of class. 1t is es
tablished that the word plug was APP
piled as slang term to the silk hat
If it is applied to the form of the hat
alone, we must go back to the 18th
century for there We're hats worn ther
IF the same general shape. And there
we're hats of the same general shape
made from beaver that Were worn il
the latter part of the 18th century b.
The rich But it is quite evident that l
the term was applied to the silk hat
and this heing established the Suns
question can be answered. The man
who first wore n plug hat is the on'
who made the first one of the kind
This was Mr.. Hetherington, a haber-
in the Strand in London. The
year was 1877 Having completed the
hat. he wore It on the street on jan
,iary Is of that year. And created
riot by 50 doing. It is Of record that