An exhibit of vintage hats, bonnets, hat stands, and gloves from the collections of Carla Wright, Jenine Grove, Bonnie Shockey, and that of the museum will be on exhibit at Allison-Antrim Museum, 365 South Ridge Avenue, Greencastle, Pennsylvania during the month of April. A chronological, timeline display will show the evolution of ladies’ and children’s hats and bonnets from the turn of the 20th century through the 1970s.
One can only theorize what the original reason or reasons were for the invention of the hat. Warmth, status, and attractiveness to the opposite sex were, more than likely, a few of the rationalities behind the appearance of the hat. A Neolithic cave drawing from 4,000 B.C. shows women riding astride longhorn cattle wearing elaborate turbans. Susan Langley says, “Ever since, the hat has reflected not only the mood of its wearer, but the spirit of its time. Hats were the crowning glory, the pinnacle, the grand finale of an outfit!” Dress fashion, hairstyles, and history greatly influenced the design of hats and bonnets. The difference between a hat and a bonnet is that bonnets tie under the chin and hats do not.
Enhancing the hat and bonnet exhibit will be antique hat pins, hat pin holders, and vintage perfume bottles from the collections of Gloria Walker.
Visiting ladies, young and old, are invited to wear their own hats (vintage or new) and return, for a short time, to the not too distant past when fashion dictated that a lady would not have left the house without a hat – and gloves.
