The Hat that Changed the World
How did the bold fashion statement of wearing a Top Hat affect architecture, world trade, human rights …and help to save the beaver?
Reputedly, in 1797, John Hetherington was the the first man brave, or foolhardy, enough to wear a Top Hat. The sight caused such great disturbance in the street that police were called-in to control the panic. He was arrested and appeared in court for wearing upon his head, “a tall structure having a shining lustre calculated to frighten timid people."
It seems that the general public just weren’t ready for such an outrageous fashion statement. They didn’t understand what they were looking at! Was this a thing from another strange and scary world? An apparition from the realm of demons? Was this monstrous man really so inhumanly tall? Was his head really that shape?
Children ran away screaming and women fainted, according to “contemporary newspaper accounts”. Dogs strained at their leashes, either to attack or flee, and an errand boy’s arm was broken when he was trampled by the mob.
There’s a lack of substantial corroboration for these oft-quoted reports and it may be that the tale is as tall as the hat! The earliest known mention was from 1899, published in the quarterly journal, Notes and…
