And the winner is...
By Linda Chase, Special to The News
Monday, November 26, 2007 11:25 AM CST
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Roger Schaefer of Menomonie correctly guessed the purpose of the mystery item in November’s What’s It For contest. He earned himself a $25 gift certificate to Town and Country Antiques, located in downtown Menomonie. The item Schaefer’s holding is a hat stretcher or hat blocker. Deb Anderson/Dunn County News
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Question: What’s it for?
Answer: Hat stretcher or hat blocker
In Victorian times, men always wore hats when they went out. The type of hat you wore showed your place in society, and often the type of work you did. If you did “blue-collar” work, and could not put “Esquire” or some other title after your name, you were not considered a “gentleman,” relegating you to wearing a bowler hat with a curly brim. “Gentlemen,” on the other hand, would sport a top hat.
These top hats were expensive, as they were made to measure for the person by a hatter. When the gentleman returned home, the hat he had worn would be brushed and have a stretcher put inside to make sure it kept its shape, especially if it had gotten damp. Men always took off their hats when entering a building as a sign of good manners.
Hat stretchers were first made in wood and, during the industrial age ( the early 20th century), they were even electrified. The hat would actually be dried with electric heat accelerating the process.
Hat stretchers continue to be made today in a more streamlined and practical style, made either of wood or plastic.
What it’s not
Other entertaining — but incorrect — guesses included: clamp, toilet paper holder, spool used for winding up wool, horseshoe, boxing knuckles, nutcrackers, and when sewing garments, it was used to make neckholes. |
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