Hat making - C.A. Mallory

Sep 21, 2026

Hat making by C.A. Mallory, connected to The Mallory Hat Company, presents a detailed account of how felt hats are manufactured and why Mallory hats are noted for their quality. The text explains the character and significance of a hat as a reflection of the wearer, followed by a technical microform section describing production steps such as felting, sizing, carrotting, blending different furs, forming a body on a cone, shrinking, and dyeing with carefully selected processes and materials.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages22

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA

How Mallory Felt Hats are Made

97-84076-28Mallory,C.A. Hat making [Danbury,Conn.][192-?] # COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIESPRESERVATION DIVISIONBIBLIOGRAPHIC MICROFORM TARGET ORIGINAL MATERIAL AS FILMED -EXISTING BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD RESTRICTIONS ON USE:Reproductions may not be made without permision tfom Columbia UniversityLbraries. # TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA FILM SIZE: 35mmREDUCTION RATIO: 9:/ IIB IMAGE PLACEMENT:IA INITIALS: 8 DATE FILMED: -7-9 TRACKING\#: 23908 # INTENTIONALSECOND EXPOSURES DUE TOPHOTOGRAPHS FEB10192654 ①3 Hat Xaking by C.A.MALLORYPresident ofTHE MALLORY HAT COMPANY "Have a good hat;the secret of your looksLives with the beaver in Canadian brooks;Virtue may flourish in an old cravatBut man and nature scorn the shocking hat."—Oliver Wendell Holmes n 1.2 From Beaver's Back,to Man's Head Being a Concise Explanation About What Your Hat Is Made of;How It Is Made and Why Mallory Hats HaveBeen at the Head for Over 100 Years: OUR hat is not just one of a collection of things of wear,like your shirt or cravat.It is completely isolated fromthe rest of your dress by your face.Of all articles that aman assumes his hat alone fully,freely and flexibly inter-prets his personality.Your suit is buttoned on;yourcollar is fastened on;your scarf is tied on;your hosiery is drawnon;your glove is squeezed on;your shoe is laced on,but your hatalone is put on. Your hat,by its quality and individuality;poise and pitch;angle and droop can be made to take on as many varying moodsas the face underneath.Ahat may look aristocratic or vulgar;seri-ous or humorous;gloomy or cheerful;dignified or fippant;radicalor conservative;rakish or righteous;fresh or wilted;alive or dead. Your hat is YOU.It commends or condemns you.It bestowscharacter or becomes a caricature.Hence,it should not be se-lected at random,but chosen with care,to be a reflection on thewearer's taste,position and.personality,instead of a reflectionupon them.Moreover,your hat,being on the direct level of theobserver's line of vision,is the first thing his eye sees and judges.Thus,a really fine hat is not just a disbursement to cover thehead,but an investment in -individuality,self-respect and therespect of others. ## How Mallory Felt Hats are Made Fur felt hats have been made for many years and althoughmodern machinery is now used,many of the processes involvedare so intricate that methods at present recognized as best de-pend on very highly skilled manual labor to a great extent.Andbecause the making of fine quality hats depends so largely upon this human element,it is to the organization of The MalloryHat Company that their reputation for a quality product is due. This organization was founded in 1823 in Danbury,Conn.,a district devoted almost solely to fur felt hat production and ina district where hat making handicraft has been handed downfrom father to son for generations. Felting or sizing a hat is the fundamental process which fur,by its construction,is able to go through and produce a strongtight fabric.This construction is seldom known to the lay personbut can be studied under a microscope which shows each indi-vidual fur fibre not to be smooth,but covered with little hooksor barbs all pointing in the same direction along the length ofthe fibre.This construction is not found in cotton,silk,linenor other fbres which are quite smooth. To increase this"felting"action,fur pelts are cleaned andtreated with nitric acid and quicksilver called carrotting.Thepelt then runs through a modified lawn-mower which removesthe skin in fine shreds,and leaves one or two ounces of fur suit-able for a hat. Various kinds of furs,beaver,nutria,hare,but chiefly coneywhich have been prepared in this way,are next blended in theproper proportions;an operation requiring much judgment,inwhich the Mallory organizatio

FAQs

What does the text say about the role of a hat for its wearer?

It argues a hat should not be chosen at random, because it reflects the wearer’s taste, position, and personality and is the first thing others see and judge.

What is the fundamental process in making fur felt hats described here?

Felting or sizing is presented as the fundamental process, enabling fur to form a strong tight fabric.

Which key steps are described in the felt hat manufacturing process?

The text outlines preparing and blending furs, forming a bat/body on a cone, handling the wet body carefully, rolling and boiling with a sizing machine to begin felting, then coloring using hand methods and vats for dyeing.

Sep 21, 2026

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