Bowlers

Bowlers or derby hats were hats that could be worn by all classes. Bowlers were developed out of London in the 1840s and became popular among workers and the wealthy both. The type of hate you wore in the Victorian era symbolized who you were in society. It was top hats for the wealthy and floppy hats for the poor. Bowlers are the only hats that transcended class boundaries in the rigid social structure of the Victorian era.

Bowlers were also popular in the history of the American west and men of all classes sported the hat, doctors, lawyers, cowboys and outlaws, not only because it was fashionable, but because it was more snug and did not blow off easily in harsh winds as wider brimmed hats did. Bowlers have also been popular among the Quechua and Aymara women of the Peruvian region and parts of South America since the 1920s, introduced by British railway workers. Women can be seen wearing bowlers in that region today. Bowlers retain popularity to this day with people wearing it to make a fashion statement. The bowler hat is one the few hats in history that had come to transcend poor and upper classes and even gender and ethnic lines.