You're the Top! A History of the Top Hat

[@hathistorianjc]

My first KZbin video! I'm so excited!

[@That_Freedom_Guy]

Congratulations. You did that very well. I would not have thought it was your first if you hadn't told us. You are a natural.

[@formercrow5242]

For a first KZbin video this is great!

[@Gloigolshpork]

Very high quality, if you hadn't told us it was your first, I wouldn't have known!

[@tophat2002]

You're cool

[@vanlampham2557]

The best hatter and the best video editor in the world

[@spaghettiking7312]

Hat Historian? This was necessary for the world.

[@hatsandboots]

Fills a need!

[@cattymajiv]

@@hatsandboots There is a female one as well, but I forget her name.

[@MikeSamuelsII-ve8gp]

I have owned a topper since I was a kid in 1972. I bought an antique one when I lived in the UK back then ( it cost me a pound and the junk shop keeper thought I was a crazy American kid to want it) and I still have it. Its a black beaver fur ( not felt) one with a fitted case, both hat and case are monogrammed with the original owners initials. It has always been too small for me to wear but love it anyway.. yet another great video, thanks !

[@ianrogerburton1670]

Wow ! I´m jealous. I also bought the complete set of Dickens second-hand (some of the books were as old as 1896) for a fiver and the shop owner also thought I was crazy. Oh, happy days !

[@brentbeacham9691]

Lots of KZbin content creators pretend to be “average” but are not. But you sir do all your own work. I find this admirable.

[@vilstef6988]

When Lincoln was out and about, he referred to his hat as his office. Because of his use of it as you noted to carry letters and other papers.

[@hathistorianjc]

cool anecdote!

[@vilstef6988]

@@hathistorianjc Also memorable in Lincoln trivia, the Smithsonian has the contents of his pockets from the night of the assassination. I saw photos of this in Americaan Heritage magazine.

[@FromOoberEarth]

At last! A history video of the top hat, excellently done. Thank you. I've been collecting top hats since I was ten when I wrote a letter to Moss Bros (UK clothes hire company) asking if they could let me have an old top hat which which they had retired from use. The ten year old me actually said that I was a collector of curiosities but despite this they posted a lovely hat to me with a polite letter wishing me well.

[@hathistorianjc]

That's pretty cool!

[@francisebbecke2727]

I would like the top hat to make a comeback. Maybe for Groundhog Day would be a start.

[@Engelhafen]

The endangerment and protections of beavers was a big reason for the disappearance of the high end top hat. However they were so valued they were often passed down from families and a few London hatters to this day sell and refurbish older top hats. Trains even stopped for people whose top hats were blown out of windows.

[@hans_am_ende]

In my hometown in Lower Saxony, the chimney sweep wears a top hat with his work clothes.

[@cattymajiv]

Very cool! But are there still chimney sweeps? We have fireplaces in Canada, but I've never heard of a chimney sweep!

[@hans_am_ende]

@@cattymajiv Perhaps this is a historical curiosity that has only survived in parts of Europe. Here, the chimney sweep is not only responsible for cleaning the chimney, but also for checking environmental regulations for heating systems and offering energy advice for homeowners. If you operate a wood burner, you are legally obliged to use it and pay for it. Nevertheless, the chimney sweep is considered a good luck charm and is very popular.

[@comlitbeta7532]

​@@cattymajivyou should probably get your chimney sweeped 😂 or at least checked from time to time

[@jagolago-bob]

@@cattymajivIn Britain you are obliged to get your chimney swept, otherwise if you get a chimney fire and can't prove that it was swept, the fire service will charge you. Chimney fires are caused by a build-up of soot, mainly. They don't wear top hats like in Germany, though, which is a pity. I think tradition in Germany says you should touch a chimney sweep to bring you luck. Just a touch on the arm. Nowhere else. 😀

[@EditioCastigata]

@@cattymajiv Chimney sweepers are also in charge of emission control, especially for (central) gas heating.

[@GwenApMannanan]

Found this video while im making my first top hat. Thanks algorithm

[@Engelhafen]

The upper classes wore beaver which was called silk but wasn’t silk. The beaver came from the US and was sent to France to be shaped then to Russia and then back to England and France for finishing.

[@LuvzToLol21]

I'd always wondered about the collapsible top hat after first seeing one in Assassin's Creed Syndicate. As the game's story is set in London in the year 1868, one of the main characters Jacob Frye has an opera hat that he can quickly pull out of his jacket when he needs to blend into a crowd.

[@randelbrooks]

some years ago the French stopped making the headers plush which is the silk long fiber material used to cover a real gossamer top hat or high hat and they have had to supplant it with long nappy wool which they brush to try to simulate it. Bishops in the church of England wear a top hat with a black silk rose right on the front on the headband. I spent three days in the Sydnee Patey hat factory and Lundin documenting every step of making top hats in 1986.

[@emmgeevideo]

"If I ever get married, I'm going to wear one..." I'm sure this video has made any number of women swoon and you have gotten much interest from the fairer sex. I'm watching this video at the two year mark according to KZbin, so who knows? You may have had a chance to wear your top hat already! I tip my hat to you as well. Video idea (if you haven't done it already): a presentation of the tradition of tipping one's hat.

[@cattymajiv]

Nah! They're only sexy on long haired rock stars, but sadly they are are all old men now! The 20 to 30 year olds now are decidedly not sexy!

[@frankstrawnation]

I know that's not my business, but I'm also curious to know if by now Jean-Charles found his better half.

[@thomasruppenthal7192]

Thank you for this very interesting and informative series. Extra praise for Scrooge McDuck mentions.

[@bern1228]

I've always been fascinated by hat wear of many types and eras. Watched the tricorne episode and subscribed. Looking forward to more content. Best wishes and success.

[@hathistorianjc]

Merci! I'm hoping to put out one video (in Each English and French) a month.

[@bikegames0]

Really great. I came across your videos recently and then chanced upon this - your very first one. Your work is excellent. I do have a small hat collection (more like an accumulation), but didn't know the origins and backgrounds of some of them until now. As an amateur magician of over five decades, I also appreciate the tribute you gave to us at the end of this video. Thank you very much.

[@vonpfrentsch]

In german it´s called "Zylinder", we also have a "chapeau claque", which is a top hat that you can fold flat und unfold when necessary.

[@thomasbeach905]

I still have my grand uncle’ “opera hat”, the iconic top hat that folds flat.

[@vonpfrentsch]

Yes, and it´s called "chapeau claque".@@thomasbeach905

[@ianrogerburton1670]

If I´m right that´s the "collapsable" top hat and was called "claque" because that was the noise it made when opened. Grüß aus Tirol !

[@frakturfreak]

Greetings from Germany. This was very informative video. I’d like to add that one the first things that comes to my mind thinking about top hats is chimney sweeps because it’s part of their traditional uniform in Germany and they are usually depicted in caricatures with such a hat.

[@hathistorianjc]

Hallo und Vielen dank! Das ist sehr nett von Ihnen. I have seen that stereotype. I'm not sure where it comes from but I have seen it written that it was worn as a sort of morale boost for a dirty job, usually with old top hats gotten second hand. But if anyone has more info I'd love to hear it!

[@PureDWhiteCloud]

@@hathistorianjc The movie "Mary Poppins"

[@skyden24195]

"And a hat. That hat. An oversized, green, top hat. People could never be sure if Hatter wore such a ridiculously large hat to downplay the size of his enormous head or to emphasize it. Maybe it was just another way for Hatter to torment a person's mind, as so many of the things he did were." -excerpt from the book/story, "No Place For Time" by Daniel Vain.

[@cattymajiv]

Thank you!

[@bgw33]

The algorithm just led me here. So glad to find you. You deserve to grow.

[@charlotteillustration5778]

My son refused to attend his prom unless he could wear a top hat, so I got him one. But the posh ones were hundreds of pounds, so he got a costume version. He did look good, though! Your videos are wonderfully entertaining, by the way.

[@hathistorianjc]

You can tell your son that I thoroughly approve. And merci!

[@jerrystaley1563]

I've watched quite a lot of your hat videos and am always surprised at how well you present your subject. Dressing in related fashions or uniforms just add to your excellence of presentation. JJS

[@beowulf.reborn]

I've seen wood carvings of 17th century gentlemen wearing hats that are _extremely_ similar to the Top Hat, including the smaller brim, the height, and the overall silhouette and straight edges.

[@ianrogerburton1670]

A version of the so-called Pilgrim Hat. Variations are also all over Seventeenth Century Dutch Paintungs. You can Google them easily.

[@DavidRodgers-bn6hj]

As a historical reenactor I finally got a top hat . I saw some where that it was in a form wore by French post riders . Liked your program

[@CrispianBarlow]

During the early 19th Century, Royal Marines wore a shorter version of the Top Hat known as a "Round Hat" unlike the army who wore Bicorns or Shakos. The Royal Marine version had white or black stays & edging depending on if they were Grenadiers, or Line Company troops. Royal Navy Petty officers also wore Round Hats

[@heatherpepper455]

Hats off to your new channel!🎩🥳

[@hathistorianjc]

Merci!

[@Gloigolshpork]

I don't know why, but you remind me of my uncle, he's a lot like you, which is what encouraged me to subscribe!

[@hathistorianjc]

I take that as a compliment!

[@expansivegymnast1020]

I love this channel!!!!

[@OlafBookspindle.]

The giant stovepipes of 1840s and 1850s are the best

[@harriettanthony7352]

Hey Ho! Fun Fact-- opera house seats in the USA had metal hat holders under the seat base.

[@hathistorianjc]

And I wish they still did...

[@cattymajiv]

So cool!

[@PhilipDeLong]

It is often the hat of choice for leaders of Masonic lodges, the Worshipful Master, who wears it when presiding in the East.

[@steveurbaniak1226]

Very informative! Thoroughly enjoy all the videos that you have poured your time into. Thank you good sir.

[@TownDeputy]

Very well done! I'm enjoying all your videos. Thanks.

[@arnoreichert7964]

My father had for his wedding a foldable tophat ( in Saarland/Germany we call this hat the chapeau claque) in 1951 and it would be hard to imagine, that he would not have one for this occasion. Even at the holy communion of my eldest brother in 1960 he wore one and at the time this was common use. My family is not a part of the upper class. We are normal ordinary people: my father used to be a craftsman (electrician with a little shop), my both grant fathers worked at the coal mine. Politicians down to small ranking mayors of towns had this hat at official events. For funerals it was as well very common to wear a chapeau claque. So it vanished not before around 15-18 years after the II. WW.

[@Satyred]

Watching this video with my tophat on

[@Satyred]

Forgot to Add,I Got it in the mail Fresh Yesterday!! 🎩

[@cattymajiv]

@@Satyred Very cool!

[@jimdrake-writer]

In the U.S., the showman and bandleader Ted Lewis began wearing a battered version of the top hat in his stage act in 1917.

[@parrotraiser6541]

Thank you for explaining the collapsible topper. I'd long wondered how they worked.

[@sarudon8412]

Love the Video! For my 1812 Michigan Militia impression, our unit wears round hats which are in the family of top hats. I never thought id like wearing one as much as i do until I finally got my hands on one! ( in addition, our unit is part of the French speaking population of Detroit/SE Michigan during the war of 1812. So our unit does our command calls in both English and French, as some officers/ members of the unit historically only spoke one of the two languages. As a bi-lingual individual, I hope you can appreciate )

[@hathistorianjc]

Cool!

[@richewilson6394]

I didn't know this but apparently in theaters they started to make racks that you could slide your top hat to hang on while you enjoy the performance.

[@Tmanaz480]

An interesting "detour" is the story of the special plush silk that they were made of.

[@cf6282]

Ahh..aparently I am watching your first video. Congratulations on the subsequent video’s. They are really informative and fun. Love what you are telling learned a lot. I watch your video’s both in English and French…and I must say..both are excellent! Keep going…but perhaps you run out of stories quickly. Can’t think of another way of ending my comment…from the top of my head…yes pun intended!

[@patricka.crawley6572]

Très bien, monsieur.

[@Engelhafen]

Rolls Royce had high ceiling cars to accommodate tall hats. You skipped the mid 19th century hats that had thicker fur and came in many beautiful colors.

[@pirateninjaalliance]

A shout-out from Atun-Shei films sent me here. This is everything I have wanted in a KZbin channel. You're doing god's work, good sir.

[@oldfashionedboots2774]

Oh my goodness this is perfect! I’m doing a speech on tophats, and this is super informative :) Great vid my dude

[@JohnSmith-rk6jy]

Welp. Looks like I've found myself a new favourite channel.

[@dariel7001]

Lovely informative video! I collect and restore antique top hats. And wear them from time to time.

[@hathistorianjc]

Thank you!

[@RonRicho]

Excellent! Very informative and entertaining. Thank you.

[@MobiusMinded]

I am loving your channel. I love history and especially the history of things. You’re doing an excellent job… even on this first one. Keep it up.

[@GazilionPT]

In Portugal that kind of hat is called "cartola". It is extremely rare - unless you're a magician. 🤔 Most people that use them are college graduates at their graduation ceremony and later on a sort of raucous parade (like Juvenalia) to mark the end of the school year. Those top hats are not black, but in the traditional colour(s) of their degree: red for Law, yellow for medicine, dark blue for humanities, light blue for natural sciences, etc.; some degrees have two colours (e.g. yellow and white for veterinary medicine), and in that case the first colour is for the hat itself, the second colour is for the satin band.

[@StrigoiVampire]

You forgot to mention goths, lots of goths like me wear Top Hats and it doesn't have to be a special event. I have two top hats, and when I go into town I sometimes wear them.

[@hathistorianjc]

I'll admit I'm very unfamiliar with goth culture so it didn't occur to me, but I support your wearing of them !

[@hathistorianjc]

Plus I'm always happy to learn something.

[@StrigoiVampire]

​@@hathistorianjc Yes, many goths wear it, these days the top hat is practically part of goth culture, the influences of this are due to the pop culture of vampire movies like Bram Stoker's Dracula, Interview with the Vampire, and even less dark movies like Willy Wonka, the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland with Johnny Depp. I'm glad your first video was about the top hat, in my opinion it's the most beautiful hat created by humans.

[@cattymajiv]

@@StrigoiVampire I didn't think Goths still existed! I thought that went out of fashion in the 1990's!

[@StrigoiVampire]

It's because goth isn't fashion, it's a subculture. Not only in the visual part (clothing, architecture) but also in music and philosophy. Gothic continues to exist from the 80s until today, normally, it's just that the media is no longer interested in it.@@cattymajiv

[@FLAMENCODELACOSTA]

I enjoy making hats for a dance troupe. I enjoy doing research about the history of hats. I found your videos this morning and must tell you that I absolutely love them. Thank you so much for doing this. I love the fact that you get to the point and it is very educational for me. I have now subscribed and intend to follow anxious to see what’s coming next..

[@spamcannon5917]

Loving your hat videos. Looking forward to more.

[@MichaelJohnson-vi6eh]

The many dramatizations of A Christmas Carol shows this history. During the Christmas Past episodes, men tend to wear stockings and Tricorn and in the "present" men wore top hats.

[@eggyboy123]

Brilliant sir

[@EvanEverhart911]

Excellent! I love my top hat! This was highly enjoyable. I have mine to wear with my teens era Morning wear.

[@AnimeLord512]

Jolly good show

[@onearmy942]

The very first!!! Awesome, in a growing library of entertaining and informative features.

[@fitzroys5255]

I have just found your channel and instantly recommended it to a friend of mine, absolutely loved the videos that have been put out.

[@hathistorianjc]

Merci beaucoup! More are coming!

[@sydneysmith1521]

Very good, thank you 😃

[@gweazal2600]

Great channel sir, fascinating. I am currently lamenting the loss of a hat that I had for many years, it was a present from my wife and now it's gone. Very upsetting.

[@hathistorianjc]

Merci! and that is tragic, I hope you can find it again

[@robnewman6101]

The London New Metropolitan Police Force men wore Reinforced Sturdy style top hats which were strong enough for standing on to look over people's heads & walls. Was it the year of 1863 when the top hats were replaced to the Helmets?

[@DRTisKING]

I'm pretty sure the Japanese Parliament still wear Top Hats for some events.

[@tommunyon2874]

The top hat was the "mascot" of my high school where our athletic teams were dubbed "The Hilltoppers", since my hometown was colloquially called "The Hill".

[@legoboy468]

Very interesting and well put together video, you’ve earned a sub : )

[@cristoffL]

Great information.

[@Gustavogukpa]

I found a brazilian newspaper about the japanese diplomats surrendering and it mocks them for using top hats and morning dresses saying that they are stuck in "grandpa era", showing how out of fashion these itens were in Brazil back then

[@kaiserofgermania5236]

I've seen a picture of Pocahontas from the 17th century and she's wearing a hat that looks just like a top hat alongside European style clothes.

[@dldove22]

Yes! The Mohican women in Stockbridge wore them in the middle 1700s.

[@robbieweber9429]

Great videos! Started on the Ushanka GREAT INFORMATION.

[@JH-lo9ut]

I'm lucky to have inherited a really nice top hat in excellent condition, and perfect size (my grandfather and I have the exact same size in shoes, suits and apparently, hats. He wore it to ceremonies at the Odd Fellows lodge but judging by the condition of it, that did not happen very often. I've worn it to some occations together with a long tail jacket. Makes me look like a vampire. Top hats are just a bit too eccentric to be worn seriously in my opinion, but they are striking, and I do enjoy wearing something spectacular from time to time.

[@20thcenturytunes]

Bravo sir, and a hearty congratualations on yoru anniversary - Just a few years ago my quartet doing the Christmas Caroling walk through town, donned top hats - not practical for northern winters

[@jeromemckenna7102]

I've only seen a top hat once in my life and that was at a wedding many years ago.

[@edmatzenik9858]

I must tell this story: I was making a video and needed a top hat. In one day, at two costume hire shops, I was served by someone who did not know what a top hat is. I am still wondering about it, especially these two questions - when so many people are so interested in clothes why would employers hire such staff, and what do those people think when they see the cartoons like the Monopoly man or Scrooge McDuck? Alas, we'll never know.

[@TheMintyMelon]

There is simply no excuse for such apalling ignorance..🧐

[@JanetStarChild]

Novel idea for a channel! I like hats. Subscribed!

[@BarafuAlbino]

When you were taking it off, I was alsomst sure that there would be a rabbit on you head. Great info, thanks!

[@infoscholar5221]

Well done, sir; I am researching your back catalogue.

[@brianchaplin9085BEC.]

I have several top hats and love them all.

[@1brummell]

And chimney-sweeps - you omitted to mention them.

[@ianrogerburton1670]

I´m sure this wonderful guy omited all sorts of things, such as that Eton schoolboys wear them and that Kennedy´s successor was unceremoniously inaugarated on an airplane after Kennedy had been assasinated. It´s called EDITING, otherwise each video would go on for ever more and soon become boring.

[@1brummell]

@@ianrogerburton1670 True enough.

[@astrotog7265]

You might still see a top hat worn when the groundhog Punxatawney (sp?) Phil is removed from his underground home every year. It may still have some usage on Groundhog Day and possibly the Easter Parade in New York City and occasionally in Philadelphia.

[@poiuyt975]

Considering the prices of Top Hats nowadays they're still for wealthy people. ;-) Somehow this hat makes me think of the Versailles conference and especially Woodrow Wilson. I'm glad to see that you included an appropriate photo in your video.

[@simonholdsworth6867]

A useful innovation may be the adjustable height top hat - with a height variable between 6 inches and a couple of feet, user configurable as expediency dictates.

[@PaulDekleva]

Hat Historian, you forgot the one man who has worn a top hat off and on for 54 years- Alice Cooper

[@cattymajiv]

And before him was the original top hat wearing rock star, the guy from T Rex, Marc Bolan! There have been others since Alice, but Marc came before Alice, and he was the first. If you like Alice Cooper's music, you would LOVE T Rex!

[@NapoIeoneBuonaparte]

My favourite hat, I own a few, their is a British Pathé video about the making of this beautiful hat

[@patrickjreid]

I wore a top hat when I got married!

[@kevp9601]

This is so Awesome ❤🧡💛💚💙💜

[@Finnishmanmusic]

The first guy to wear a top hat got arrested for having too much drip

[@dawudbey3527]

Great and informative video! 🎩

[@dawudbey3527]

I believe it’s origin is from the tarboosh and Fez

[@hathistorianjc]

Thank you!

[@ICoyote65]

Last time I saw a Top Hat was a couple months ago on a scruffy old dude, possibly homeless, shopping in Target. It looked good on him. 😎👍

[@CAP198462]

Also worn by TotalBiscuit. GNU TotalBiscuit.

[@user-vv6sy2ox4q]

John Hetherington was my ancestor. I have seen the newspaper article documenting his "offence" (though I don't have it to hand). Yes he was the first haberdasher to bring the Top Hat to England, though he imported the Top Hat from France, where it originated. That is my understanding.

[@gunnercooper9405]

I think Kennedy was the last president to ride in a convertible too, idk why tho

[@williamtoner8674]

Great channel

[@sandyburke3222]

The power puff girls reference was epic❤

[@BobAbc0815]

The tricky Part about collapsing Top Hats is making them pop up again.

[@marvwatkins7029]

Up through the 1960's, my father would wear a collapsible top hat to the Opera.

[@blueplanet1048]

I’ve always liked top hats for some reason. Where can one buy a good quality one? Funny thing is I was thinking to wear if I get married and you said the same thing 😂 Thanks for the video!

[@hathistorianjc]

I got my collapsible one from Delmonico's, the link is in the video description. Otherwise, if price is not an oject, you can always get one from Lock & co. of London, they have some of the best in the world.

[@blueplanet1048]

@@hathistorianjc thanks for the reply! Ya I rather get a high quality Thanks again!! Cheers!!

[@worldtraveler930]

I am the Proud owner of a handmade leather stove pipe hat!!! 🤠👍

[@Mr.Rabbit221b]

Where can I buy a tall top hat? Just like yours!

[@hathistorianjc]

I got mine from Delmonico's. I think I put the link in the description.

[@station7thedoor]

An impressive couple of hats! A proper top hat is one of the few hat styles I don't own. It seems very difficult to find a proper one in decent condition for an affordable price. It seems impossible to find new top hats in silk, and I heard from one source that silk top hats have not been made since the 60s. Both of your top hats appear to be silk, and in excellent condition. How did you come by them?