John B. Stetson designed a damn fine hat. There is no other hat associated so closely with the American cowboy as a Stetson. His original design was created as a joke shared with his companions on a trip to Pike’s Peak. However, it became known as the “Boss of the Plains” and catapulted him to stardom. No small feat for a man born in New Jersey in 1830 who lived most of his life in Pennsylvania and only went west of the Mississippi once, nearest I can figure.
The Man Behind the Hat – John B. Stetson
But if an eastern man was responsible for covering more western cowboy heads than any other haberdasher wasn’t strange enough, it gets better. He only went west once because he was dying. Some eastern doctor diagnosed him with tuberculosis, and John Batterson Stetson left Pennsylvania to see the West before he died.
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Stopping in St. Joseph, MO, he went to work in a brickyard. John B. was an industrious gent and a leader of men, so in a short time became a manager, then a part owner of the brickyard, all while he was dying. And until a flood wiped out the facility, he was doing well.
Essentially broke but still dying, he joined some pioneers headed for Pikes Peak. Heading west, he and his companions acquired many animal skins but found few trees to protect them from the storms and unrelenting sun. Lacking methods of tanning the hides, they used them to make simple tents to escape the sun and weather, with most of the raw hides being discarded. Stetson then utilized methods he’d learned from his father in the manufacturing of hats to make waterproof felt tents, all while he was dying. This method of making felt tents would become the foundation of his hat-making business.
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His First Hat sold for a Five-Dollar Gold Piece
It was on this trip that he made his first felt hat, waterproof, wide of brim, and tall of crown, as a joke to his companions. A bull wacker, tired of the “western hats” of the day, mainly consisting of coonskin, gave him a five-dollar gold piece for it. This was the first Stetson hat ever sold, and at a much higher price than he would realize for some time to come.
I was unable to discover where John B. went immediately after selling his first hat, but apparently, he wasn’t dying anymore. By 1865, he had returned to Philadelphia with 100 dollars to start his own hat business. He experimented with different styles, both for men and women. He attempted to shape the current fashion by altering the crowns or curling the brims. Mostly, he failed. But he wasn’t dying, and he wasn’t giving up. In the end he was just struggling to succeed.
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He Used the Finest Fur
He took what little money he had and bought the finest fur he could find for his hats. His hats began to sell. He paid for every shipment of the best fur in advance, until he couldn’t. His profit margins were so low, as his hats were retailing for only two dollars, that he could no longer pay for his next shipment. To his amazement, the delivery man offered Stetson the option to pay for the shipment after delivery. John B., being a religious man, saw this unsolicited extension of payment as a sign from God, which he believed would ensure his success. Inspired by this event, Stetson ceased attempts to create the new, next fashion statement for the eastern market and returned to the design he had sold to the bull wacker out West. This proved to be an excellent business decision.
Boss of the Plains
The “Boss of the Plains” creation, with its high, straight-sided crown and wide brim, was ideal for working outdoors. He sent a sample “Boss of the Plains” hat to every clothing vendor in the Southwest to promote it, along with a request to order more. Suddenly, he was receiving orders from all over the region. He then made another brilliant decision. Regardless of cost, he let the product speak for itself.
John B. made three versions of the “Boss of the Plains” hat. The opening price-point version of regular felt sold for five dollars. The middle-of-the-road version sold for ten dollars and was made from very fine felt. The premium version, made from extra fine beaver or nutria fur, sold for thirty dollars. John B. never sacrificed quality for price. He also did not believe in catalogs or advertising; he simply let his hats do the talking. By sending vendors free samples, they could try the hats and determine if they were both durable and functional, as well as aesthetically pleasing. John B. is credited as saying, “There is no advertisement equal to a well-pleased customer.”
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Stetson on the Hat
Another example of his marketing genius was to emboss STETSON on the sweat band, as well as include specific information about the distributor/reseller. It was not uncommon to find a Stetson embossed with a specific line, such as “Boust & Stahl Sunbury, PA” or “Made exclusively for John Wannamaker, Philadelphia.” By this method, he entrenched the loyalty of his distributors.
John B. Stetson’s customer base exceeded cowboys. They were often worn by men across the world, of every background and social standing. The U.S. military adopted the Stetson. Units from the Canadian, British, and South African military also sported Stetsons for their durability and protection from the elements. Presidents wore Stetsons. The Stetson became ‘the hat for men.
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Business Pioneer
But wait, John’ B. didn’t stop there! He still wasn’t dying, but he had some illnesses. When he was ill, he had a doctor come to the office. Then he started using his doctor to treat his employees on-site. His business continued to flourish. Then he had more employees having more illnesses, hence more doctors on site. In a wise move to keep valued employees, he built a hospital to treat his employees. John B. Stetson provided company health care at a time when it was unheard of in American business. He also implemented an apprenticeship program to encourage long-term employment. Stetson established a Christmas Bonus program. He instilled thriftiness in his employees, encouraging them to buy their own homes, and created the Stetson Building and Loan Association to help his employees achieve this goal.
John B. Stetson
The iconic brand we view today as “the hat” of the American cowboy has now covered much more than just western heads. But at a time when the westward progression was booming, the cattle business was blossoming, and cowboys needed a better hat, it came from a man born in New Jersey, who spent most of his life in Philadelphia, and only discovered the West because he was dying in or around 1865. John Batterson Stetson died in 1906 at the age of 75, leaving a substantial philanthropic legacy behind and the singular distinction of creating and defining cowboy headgear.
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