Introduction

Hats frame the face, topping the head, crucial to our body’s operation—perhaps a reason for their importance as artifacts. Historically, hats and crowns have been important indicators of status and have been used to mark important and sacred occasions. In the 19th century, women wore some sort of hat or bonnet to travel, even locally, to protect their faces from the sun and as a marker of decorum. Hats were and still are worn to mark special and sacred occasions, ranging from church and university homecomings to regular Sunday church services. The tradition of wearing hats for Easter Sunday has been celebrated in songs such as “The Easter Parade.” Traditionally, on Easter Sunday, a major event for hats, many women would buy special spring hats just for Easter each year—maybe a wide brim, pink straw trimmed with tulle and flowers. Fall and winter also would bring seasonal hats, especially wool felt hats, perhaps decorated with feathers and ribbons. Weddings also have their own special headgear, often designed just for the bridal party. The tradition of women wearing hats as part of their Sunday morning church dress in north Louisiana reaches back into the 1800s through the 1970s, and continues today, especially in many African American churches.

This photo-essay online exhibition features an assortment of hats, ranging from the early 1900s to the present and represents both Anglo- and African Americans. The hats were collected for an exhibition held November 6-21, 2006, at the Lincoln Parish Library in Ruston, La., in conjunction with the North Central Louisiana Arts Council’s presentation of Mahogany Ensemble Theatre’s production of the play Crowns on November 17. The hats were obtained through requests made to churches and the community through letters, the newspaper, and community contacts. The call for hats was answered by women who are still purchasing and wearing hats today, by those who have been unable to part with hats that they wore through the 1970s, and by four hat collectors. Barbara Moore, one of the collectors and a children’s librarian, makes the following statement about her feelings on collecting hats:

Being a hat collector is just one of the many areas in which I indulge myself. Growing up I remember my grandmother would not leave the house especially on Sundays without her hat, gloves, and handkerchief. Church always brought out the hats of every color and style and I remember fondly the Easter morning service where new hats and dresses were displayed with pride and confidence. Often the hats I saw were of course the “height of fashion” well at least the height of fashion for Ruston. Being brought up in the ways of my mother and grandmothers my sisters and I would also have our hats and gloves, new dresses, socks and shoes for Easter. I realize that women all over do wear hats, but to me Southern women do the presentation of hats in the most genteel and womanly way. There is never a doubt in my mind that hats should be worn for all occasions whether it’s for high fashion, gardening, religious practices, or just for fun. I collect hats; it may be just an offhand comment but the beauty of hats captures my imagination, wonderful memories are returned to me of gentler times and the women who wore them.

Today, hats are a popular collectible, along with the hat boxes that safely store the hats. Numerous people have mentioned that they could not bring themselves to discard their hats, so they donated them to community theater wardrobes, the Louisiana Tech costume collection, or sold them to vintage shops.

With hats being such an important part of women’s ensemble, especially in the 1940s-1960s, hats could be purchased at department stores, such as The Palace in Monroe and Lewis’s in Ruston, along with specialty stores such as the Millinery in Monroe. In the 1950s-60s, it was a special trip from Ruston to Monroe just to shop for the perfect hat to complete a new Sunday outfit. There, women could find hats of every shape and color displayed in and on racks on top of long glass cases. Each case was topped by a mirror on a stand with a stool strategically placed in front of it so that shoppers could try on the hats. A child could have great fun watching her mother trying hats, some of which made her look elegant and others hilarious. Today hat shops and hat makers still thrive. Metropolitan areas such as Atlanta and Dallas provide more hat boutiques; also New Orleans has had a flourishing hat business; for example, Yvonne LeFleur, has resumed business in her boutique after Hurricane Katrina. Locally, hats are available from Martha’s and Dillard’s, with prices as high as $200.

Given the special occasions traditionally celebrated with hats and their importance to their wearers, it is not surprising that both women and men have many fond memories of hats, and many have kept family hats for sentimental reasons. As the lenders for the exhibition brought in their hats, they also shared the factual information about each hat and their memories and stories, which are presented here with each hat. Hopefully, these stories will encourage viewers to understand, appreciate, and treasure the tradition of women’s dress hats.

THE HATS AND THEIR STORIES


Natural and Black Stripe Straw with Bow
Label: Mr. D; Cheziere in Shreveport
Loaned by Linda Aber, Ruston
This was one of several hats she was given in 1973 while she was working for an antique store owned by the Jim Russell family. She says, she was “cleaning out a house [the Russell’s] after Mr. Russell had passed away. These hats had no boxes, so they were to be thrown away.” She displays the hats in her bedroom.

Navy felt with grosgrain pleated bow
Ca. 1940s
Loaned by Linda Aber, Ruston
She was given these hats in 1973 while she was working for an antique store owned by the Jim Russell family. She says, she was “cleaning out a house (the Russell’s) after Mr. Russell had passed away. These hats had no boxes, so they were to be thrown away.” She displays the hats in her bedroom.

Lime green straw with blue trim
Loaned by Linda Aber, Ruston
She was given this hat in 1973 while she was working for an antique store owned by the Jim Russell family. She says, she was “cleaning out a house (the Russell’s) after Mr. Russell had passed away. These hats had no boxes, so they were to be thrown away.” She displays the hats in her bedroom.

Beige Straw with Flowers
Label: Neiman Marcus Original
Loaned by Linda Aber, Ruston
She was given this hat in 1973 while she was working for an antique store owned by the Jim Russell family. She says, she was “cleaning out a house (the Russell’s) after Mr. Russell had passed away. These hats had no boxes, so they were to be thrown away.” She displays the hats in her bedroom.

Purple Felt and Cotton
Ca. 1920s or 1930s
Loaned by Barbara Moore, Ruston
She purchased it at First Street Antiques in Arcadia, LA. She displays it as part of her hat collection.

Lime Straw with Feathers with Lime Green Gloves
Label: Flo Lill Models
Ca. early 1940s
Loaned by Iwilla Hamilton, Ruston
She purchased the hat at Weiss Goldring. She says, “I bought it to wear on my honeymoon. I had a black suit with a lime green blouse, and I got this lime green hat to go with it and the lime green gloves.” She also wore the hat to church and for a church skit. Now 62 years old, she displays the hat on an antique hat stand that was a gift from her children.

Black Felt with Bows and Mother-of-Pearl Button
Ca. 1920s-30s
Loaned by Susan Roach, Ruston
She found this hat in her grandmother’s (Frances Roach) wardrobe after her grandmother’s death. She assumed that it had been her grandmother’s. “I kept it for sentimental reasons. It was so cute that I wore it one year to a Halloween party with a black outfit.”

Blue Straw
Label: GL047513 Union Made
Ca. 1950s
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy
She got the hat from her grandmother, Ermine C. Trussell, for the purpose of playing “dress-up.”

Crocheted Straw Hat with velvet
Label: Mr. John; Cheziere in Shreveport
Loaned by Linda Aber, Ruston
She was given these hats in 1973 while she was working for an antique store owned by the Jim Russell family. She says, she was “cleaning out a house (the Russell’s) after Mr. Russell had passed away. These hats had no boxes, so they were to be thrown away.” She displays the hats in her bedroom.

Brown Horsehair Braid
Label: Lola Burns Millinery in Tucson, Arizona
Ca. late 1940s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
I had this hat just before I got married. I would say in 1948. She [Lola Burns] and her sister had a hat shop in Tucson. I wore it with a brown dress with green in it. I had a thing about picture hats. I just loved them.

Red Polka Dots on White
Made by Louella Cherry, Tucson, Arizona
Ca. 1940s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
“Mother [Louella Cherry] had made me a darling dress out of this, and so she made the hat for me. I loved it; I don’t know what I did with my dress. I was very slender at the time. I just thought this was perfectly cute. She took a course [on hat making] in Nashville after my father died. I didn’t move with it when I got married in 1948.

Beige Felt with Flower
Label: Windsor
Ca. 1950s
Loaned by Mavel P. Davis, Dubach
She purchased it for a homecoming at the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, in Unionville, La., held the fourth Sunday in July in the fifties.

Black Wool with Satin Bow and Veil
Label: Lancaster
Ca. 1950s or 1960s
Loaned by Barbara Moore, Ruston
She purchased it at a Goodwill store, and she proudly displays it when not wearing it.

Tan and White Straw with Wide Brim
Ca. 1940s
Loaned by Pat Brenner, Ruston
She inherited this hat, along with a matching purse, from her husband’s aunt, Mrs. John Jacobs from New Orleans, LA.

Pink Feather
Ca. 1950s
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy, Ruston
She purchased it at an antique store.

Pink felt
Label: Palais Royal
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy, Ruston
She purchased it at an antique store.

Pink with Pleated Tulle
Label: Mme Esther
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Barbara Moore, Ruston
She purchased this one at Wisteria, an antique store in Arcadia, La., in December 2004. She says, “I love to wear hats and this pink hat was worn on Easter Sunday 2005, when my family members went out to lunch. I have worn most of the hats in my collection at some point in their life, but I can only imagine where they have been or what occasion bought about their purchase. My niece and I got together and decided that we would wear our ‘Easter hats’ on a whim, and did we ever get stares and many comments on our hats. We loved every minute of it! A fellow diner asked to buy it, but I had already become attached to it and now doubt I will ever part with it.”

Magenta Pill Box
Label: Doris Designed
Ca. early 1960s
Loaned by Susan Roach, Ruston
“I bought this hat in either Ruston or Monroe to wear from Easter church service to go with a magenta taffeta brocade dress during the Jackie Kennedy pill box fad. I didn’t particularly like the way I looked in it, but I loved the hat and kept it for sentimental reasons.”

Pill Box with Rhinestones
Made by Louella Cherry
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun
Jane Calhoun’s mother, Louella Cherry, originally from Nashville, had always been a fancy seamstress: “She learned it when she was young, and she did sew for a lot of wealthy people. She took some millinery courses, and she learned how to tailor. She just made everything my sisters and I wore.” Mrs. Calhoun remembers hat parties she used to give: “I’ve saved hats of all kinds; I have oodles of them in my attic. What my husband and I started for quite a few years. This was after we quit going to the officer’s club on New Year’s Eve, because it lost its charm for some reason. So people would come over for the evening, and I would put out about 70 crazy hats. I even have a Tech beanie of my husband’s. Well, that [the beanie] was [from] the year he went to Tech before he went to WestPoint. We would just ask people to stop by, and I had food and drinks, and some would stay till midnight, and some until two in the morning. I did it once when we moved back here, but it was fun. . . When I greeted them at the front door and asked them to come in, I said, ‘The only thing you have to do is find a hat and put it on.’ They wore their hats for the evening. . . They had a great time.  When they did that and wore their hat, why that just loosened things up immediately.  I have an antique mirror on the wall, and I have hats all around it."

Pink Straw Picture Hat
Label: Evelyn Baron Exclusive
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
“This was worn with a shocking pink suit made by my mother [Louella Cherry]. The top had a floral thing, and it had a little jacket. She made our hats, our coats, and covered the buttons.”

Black Velvet
Label: Gallant Lady, Original
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy, Ruston
She purchased it at an antique store.

Black Patent with quilted taffeta brim lining
Label: Kelton Original, bought in the Washington area
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
Ca. late 1960s
“This was the hat that I thought was such as saucy thing. . . I loved it, and I wore it with black and white. I had some real high-heel pointed toe black shoes that I wore with it. I just thought it was so different. I probably got it I wore it to church, officers’ club luncheons. I thought it was so unusual.”

Black Pill Box with Veil
Label: Union made, 633286; Natchitoches, MS
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Theresia Campbell, Dubach
She purchased the hat in 1966 for her uncle’s funeral in 1966 and wore it to church for three to four years after that. “Now I have put it up as one of those things to show your kids. People usually wore hats. A lady in Fellowship Baptist Church was the only person who always wore hats every Sunday to church, and she died of cancer. At her funeral, her daughter and four sisters all wore one of her hats. Most of her hats were wide brimmed.”

Dark brown mink
Label: Gus Mayer; New Orleans
Loaned by Pat Brenner, Ruston
She inherited the hat from her husband’s aunt, Mrs. John Jacobs from New Orleans, LA. It is stored in a white and olive Gus Mayer hatbox.

Beige Autumn Mist Mink
Label: Bob Greene for Irene of New York; New York
Loaned by Pat Brenner, Ruston
She inherited the hat from her husband’s aunt, Mrs. John Jacobs from New Orleans, LA. It is stored in a white and olive Gus Mayer hatbox.

Taupe Feather Hat
Label: Miss Mary of New York: Lord and Taylor Salon
Ca. late 1960s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
“I wore it to church and some of the wives’ club meetings (military luncheons, etc.). I had a fur coat at the time and wore it. My hair was a light brown, and it adapted to all this stuff. I had a three-quarter length beige suede coat, and I wore it with that some. I had a thing for glamour.”

Leopard Fur
Label: Betmar purchased in Washington
Ca. late 60s, early 70s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
“I wore it with a beige wool dress to church and to the wives’ club. Imagine sitting behind me in church wearing a hat like that! It was sold to me as real fur, but that was before all the environmentalists.”

Olive Green and Cream Crochet
Made by Jane Calhoun
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
“I made it to go with a green wool suit that my mother made me. She was a milliner part time and a seamstress. It had a dress to go with it—a beige chiffon top. You could buy forms [for the hats]. In those days, I made all of my good clothes, nothing casual, but I had taken several special classes and I grew up with it with my mother, learning to sew.”

Black Felt with Mesh and Feathers
Ca. 1970s
Loaned by Mavel P. Davis, Dubach
While she couldn’t remember exactly when and where she bought this hat (size 22), it was about 25 years ago. After some years of wearing it on Sundays, she didn’t want to throw it away, so she just kept it.

Navy Straw
Label: Bierner
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Jane Calhoun, Ruston
This hat belonged to Mrs. Naylor, who was an avid hat wearer. Mrs. Calhoun says, “I don’t think I’ve worn any hats in Ruston, because people [didn’t], except for Mrs. Cup and Mrs. Naylor. Mrs. Naylor was a cousin to my husband [Col. John Calhoun], and this is one of her hats that I have, but I know nothing about it. Her daughter let me have one of hers when she was passing them on. Heroise Naylor wore hats to the Holiday Inn for lunch everyday, and I believe that her daughter gave some of the hats that were hers, I thought, to the archives at Tech. I do think maybe they gave some of those to the community theater. She wore a hat everywhere. She wore a hat before she died out to Green Clinic for an appointment.”

Black Felt with Ribbon
Label: 684761; Union Made
Ca. 1970s
Loaned by Mavel P. Davis, Dubach
Her favorite hat, she got it in the 1970s. She says “It looked better on me than any had I put on.” It had a long, dark pheasant-type feather on it that was broken, but she kept wearing it.

Gold Pill Box
Label: A Swaggy
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy, Ruston
She purchased it at an antique store.

Brown Felt
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Patricia Flournoy
She wore this hat for a homecoming game, as was customary in the sixties.

Gold Taffeta
Ca. 1996
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
This hat was given to her about 10 years ago by Zella Sumbler, her late husband’s niece, as a gift.

Silver wide brim
Ca. 2004
Loaned by Rosie Hodge, Ruston
The hat was purchased in Atlanta, Georgia, at a special hat shop for a Christmas tea that “a mother was giving her daughter in one of those fine Atlanta hotels. I still wear the hat today.” She says that it can be worn any time of the year. She also wears it at Christmas with a suit trimmed in matching silver.

Gold with Sequins, and Feathers
Label: Whittail and Shon
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Etheline Streets, Ruston
She wore this hat to church.

Gold leaf, rhinestones Band
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
The hat was made in 1995 and is special to her because she received it as a Christmas gift from her daughter.

Black Wide-brim Felt with Netting and Bow
Label: Sonni; San Francisco
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Mamie Hammock, Ruston
She wore this hat to church.

Black Felt with Feathers, Sequins, and Net
Label: Dillard’s; Shreveport
Ca. 2005
Loaned by Wilnora Harris; Ruston
The hat was purchased to match a “new black suit with sequins” and is worn about once a year. “I like to go and look,” she says; she may wear a hat one time per year.

Black petals, Rhinestone Band
Ca. 1996
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
Her daughter Lynda purchased this hat especially to wear for a banquet and gave it to her mother.

Black Felt
Label: Gene Doris; New York
Ca. 1960s
Loaned by Barbara Moore, Ruston
This was a Christmas gift from a friend, who knew she collected hats.

Black Felt
Label: Giovanni, Florence, New York
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Ella Mullinax, Ruston

Red Felt with Trim
Ca. 1970s
Loaned by Mavel P. Davis, Dubach
This hat was purchased in a Monroe shop specifically to wear for the 2nd district Women’s Mission, whose members wore red hats on Wednesdays in October. She became attached to the hat and couldn’t bear to throw it away, so she just kept it.

Brown Felt
Ca. 1998
Loaned by Wilnora Harris, Ruston
The hat was purchased in Dallas, Texas, at the mall about eight or nine yeas ago. She says, “When I go to Dallas, I walk the whole mall. I might buy three or four hats.” She still wears the hat to church with a beige or brown suit.

Wide brim Olive Felt with Feathers
Label: Classic, Mr. John, NY, Paris; New York
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
This hat is made by one of her favorite designers, Mr. John, and is an example of a winter hats, which would be worn after Labor Day until Easter.

Yellow Felt with Net and Gold Trim
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Wilnora Harris, Ruston
Her granddaughter, Diana Bell, wore the hat for her high school homecoming court before giving the hat to her. She wears it for special occasions and on Sunday.

Black Felt with Trim
Ca. 1989
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
Her late husband purchased this hat for her in 1989 when they were in Lexington, Kentucky.

Red with White Lace and Stones
Label: Deborah; New York
Ca. 2004
Loaned by Wilnora Harris, Ruston
She purchased the hat in Shreveport, especially for Missionary Day at the Mays Chapel CME Methodist Church, and wore it with a white suit. She says, “When I see a hat I like, I just get it. I occasionally wear it today- no certain occasion- if it matches, I just put it on. It makes me feel like I’m dressed up.”

Ivory Straw with Net
Label: Deborah Fashion
Ca. 2002
Loaned by Rosie Hodge, Ruston
She purchased the hat in 2003 at a hat and suit shop on Louisville to be worn for her granddaughter’s wedding. The hat matched her pink suit with pearls and sequins, and she received many compliments on it. She still wears the hat today to church and wedding receptions.

Red Straw with Satin Bow
Label: Made in China
Ca. 2007
Loaned by Mattie K. Mattox, Ruston
She received the hat in October as a gift. She will wear the hat during summer as a Sunday dress hat to match her red suit.

Navy Straw, Pink Ribbon Trim
Label: Yvonne Le Fleur; Boutique in New Orleans
Ca. 1990s
Loaned by Gloria McLain, Ruston (originally from New Orleans)
This hat was acquired in 1996 to be worn to church with a blue suit and pink blouse. She stores it in a hat box from Yvonne Le Fleur, who made the hat. She retrieved the hat from New Orleans after her initial evacuation. She says, “I evacuated New Orleans with my hat. Everything on the first floor sat in seven feet of water for two weeks; upstairs was fine. Hurricane Katrina, August 29, 2005 caused us to leave New Orleans. We were not allowed to go back home until three months later. When we did get a chance, I immediately went upstairs to check on my hats. So after several return trips, we finally took all items that were saved, along with my hats. I’ve worn it once since I’ve been in Ruston; not too many hats are worn today.”

Pink and White Straw
Label: Whittail and Shon
Ca. 2005
Loaned by Rosie Hodge, Ruston
The hat was purchased for a church occasion to be worn with a white suit. Her daughter bought it for her in Atlanta, and she still wears it today for conventions and church activities.

Pink Straw
Label: Mr. John
Ca. 1994
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
The hat was purchased in May 1994 by her husband. She says, “My late husband bought [the hat] while we were in Atlanta at the General Conference to match a pink [suit] he had bought. When I was visiting in Lexington, Kentucky, I wore this hat to church, and it was a real show stopper. On our way home, my daughter stopped at the red light and a lady was just honking to tell me how beautiful my hat was.” She still wears the hat today to church and special events, and the hat is very special to her because her husband gave it to her.

Pink Straw
Label: 100% Straw, made in Philippines
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Rosie Hodge, Ruston
She received the hat in July 2006 from her daughter as a gift, and she wears it to church. She says, “Whenever I go to church, I have a hat on.” She attends Pine Grove Baptist Church, and also has over twenty hat boxes.

Lavender and Gold Wide-brim with Netting and Feathers
Label: New York Model; New York
Ca. 2000
Loaned by Mrs. Malanie Salsberry, Ruston

Gray straw hat
Label: Deborah; New York
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
The hat was purchased from Martha’s (dress shop) in 1999 along with “a beautiful gray two piece suit.” She says, “My family loves for me to wear hats.”

Black Straw
Label: I FY; New York
Ca. 2002
Loaned by Annie Brown, Ruston
She says, “I wanted something different for my church anniversary; I used it for other special occasions at my church and others. I usually receive compliments whenever I wear it.”

Acknowledgements

Photographs by Susan Roach and Kerry Davis

Labels by Susan Roach, Kerry Davis, and Laura Wade

Web Processing and Entry by Kerry Davis and Laura Wade