Abraham Lincoln's Stovepipe Hat, Etc.

[Eva Elisabeth]

(12-06-2015 06:01 PM)maharba Wrote:  I don't know that any event I have ever seen anyone wear one. Now a shiny
black top hat can be a fashion statement, yes. The odd clipped, sparse
black beard along with the extra tall stovepipe hat and a dark black suit
are a memorable combination.

Whatever you wear and however you do your hair is a statement.
(As for the event, top hats - not of stove pipe length though - are regular outfit for equestrian dressage contests:
    )

[L Verge]

I just have to post this link on top hats and stovepipe hats because it is so rich in detail and, especially, photographs and drawings. Stick through it to the end because there is an interesting trivia section related to the hats.

http://www.victoriana.com/Mens-Clothing/tophats.htm

[Eva Elisabeth]

Great link, Laurie, and just makes me think of this Lautrec which hangs on my bedroom door:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moulin_Rouge:_La_Goulue

[Eva Elisabeth]

(12-05-2015 08:10 AM)Eva Elisabeth Wrote:  

(12-05-2015 04:34 AM)maharba Wrote:  I can't think of anyone else wearing that bizarre hat. Was it to try and appear taller I wonder. Abraham Lincoln was 6 foot 3, but so was Washington and Jefferson, and I think Lyndon Johnson was 6 foot 5. I can't remember seeing any of them often even wearing a hat. Looking again through old clippings, his hat was given to preacher Phineas Gurley by Mary Todd Lincoln, and the Estate of Gurley had to sue to try to get it returned from a Lincoln collector.

AFAIK this was the fashion of those days, and most likely (my guess) you can't think of anyone else wearing it because most photos were portraits taken in studios where one wouldn't wear headwear. The President was sure an exception to also take outdoor photos of.

He used his hat as filing cabinet, thus the taller the hat the more storage room.

I once had a similar question but from a slightly different angle: why would someone who had zero interest in fashion would wear such an uncomfortable hat (while I've always understood Abraham Lincoln was ignorant of his appearance, i.e wouldn't have cared how becoming something was to him as long as it was comfortable, like his carpet slippers).

So why this hat? Meanwhile I learned a lot from the Victorian experts on this board, and my perception (the experts may correct this) is that 1.) it was inappropriate in general to show up in the street without any headwear, and 2.) that this kind of hat represented a gentleman's standing, and Abraham Lincoln was sure proud of his achievements. Despite I think there was not much choice and this the hat of the days.

And yes, I second Roger, he certainly liked that feeling and often asked others to measure up with him. Please see e.g. my last post here: http://rogerjnorton.com/LincolnDiscussio...r#pid52646

Many thanks to Bill Binzel for shedding light on a probable reason for Abraham Lincoln's head gear choice:
     
Source: Richard Bak: "The Day Lincoln was Shot", p. 7. 

[RJNorton]

Very interesting, Bill and Eva! Thanks for sharing - I never knew this.

I tried to find if a Daniel Webster hat still existed, and indeed there is one in the Rauner Special Collections Library at Dartmouth.

http://raunerlibrary.blogspot.com/2012/06/realia.html

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jjTt0RRcj40/T9...alia38.jpg

[Eva Elisabeth]

Amazing!!! (IMO the hat was more becoming to Abraham Lincoln than to Webster!)