The John B. Stetson Company , founded by John B. Stetson in 1865, was the maker of the Stetson cowboy hats , but ceased manufacturing in 1970. Stetson hats are now being manufactured in Garland, Texas , by Hatco, Inc., who also produce Resistol and Charlie 1 Horse hats.
97-634: Stetson is an American brand of hat manufactured by the John B. Stetson Company . "Stetson" is also used as a generic trademark to refer to any campaign hat , particularly in Scouting . John B. Stetson gained inspiration for his most famous hats when he headed west from his native New Jersey for health reasons. On his return east in 1865, he founded the John B. Stetson Company in Philadelphia. He created
194-399: A Cheyenne warrior. In 1883, in the area of North Platte, Nebraska , Cody founded Buffalo Bill's Wild West , a circus-like attraction that toured annually. (Contrary to the popular misconception, the word Show was not a part of the title.) In 1886, Cody and Nate Salsbury, his theatrical manager, entered into partnership with Evelyn Booth (1860–1901), a big-game hunter and scion of
291-595: A Quaker who had settled in Pennsylvania . There is no evidence to indicate Buffalo Bill was raised as a Quaker. In 1847 the couple moved to Ontario, having their son baptized in 1847, as William Cody, at the Dixie Union Chapel in Peel County (present-day Peel Region , of which Mississauga is a part), not far from the farm of his father's family. The chapel was built with Cody money, and the land
388-477: A hotel manager , but historians have had difficulty documenting them. He may have fabricated some for publicity. Namely, it is argued that in contrast to Cody's claims, he never rode for the Pony Express, but as a boy, he did work for its parent company, the transport firm of Russell, Majors, and Waddell. In contrast to the adventurous rides, hundreds of miles long, that he recounted in the press, his real job
485-644: A teamster with the rank of private in Company H, 7th Kansas Cavalry , and served until discharged in 1865. In 1866, he reunited with his old friend Wild Bill Hickok in Junction City, Kansas , then serving as a scout. Cody enlisted as a scout himself at Fort Ellsworth and scouted between there and Fort Fletcher (later renamed and moved to Fort Hays ). He was attached as a scout, variously, to Captain George Augustus Armes ( Battle of
582-660: A touring show which traveled around the United States, Great Britain, and Continental Europe. Audiences were enthusiastic about seeing a piece of the American West . Emilio Salgari , a noted Italian writer of adventure stories, met Buffalo Bill when he came to Italy and saw his show; Salgari later featured Cody as a hero in some of his novels. In December 1872, Cody traveled to Chicago to make his stage debut with his friend Texas Jack Omohundro in The Scouts of
679-735: A Stetson with a flat brim. The Stetson was first used unofficially by the North-West Mounted Police , in place of the traditional white pith helmet , not practical for the Canadian West. The color for the RCMP Stetson is sometimes referred to as "Belgian Belly"; it is a reddish buff, pastel-like color of the underfur of the Belgian hare. It is also a very little-used "second name" for the Stetson. Although called
776-406: A Stetson, the hat type is similar to a campaign hat . The Ontario Provincial Police also wore the Stetson (grey woven fabric) as part of their uniform from 1909 to 1930s and again from 1997 to 2009. The Calgary Police Service may wear a black Stetson as an optional part of their uniform, reflecting the city's western roots and cowboy heritage. Although worn by some officers year-round, the hat
873-524: A farm just outside Le Claire, Iowa . His father, Isaac Cody, was born on September 5, 1811, in Toronto Township , Upper Canada , now part of Mississauga , Ontario , directly west of Toronto . Mary Ann Bonsell Laycock, Bill's mother, was born about 1817 in Trenton, New Jersey . She moved to Cincinnati to teach school, and there she met and married Isaac. She was a descendant of Josiah Bunting,
970-557: A hat like one he had fashioned for himself out of necessity during a lengthy Western expedition. Stetson's Boss of the Plains , with its high crown and wide flat brim, became the prototype for all other cowboy hat designs. A factory in St. Joseph, Missouri produced Stetson hats until parent company, Hatco Inc., closed it in 2004. The second factory in Galveston, Texas , continue to turn out
1067-575: A hat that has become symbolic of the pioneering American West, the " Boss of the Plains ". This Western hat would become the cornerstone of Stetson's hat business and is still in production today. Stetson eventually became the world's largest hat maker, producing more than 3,300,000 hats a year in a factory spread over 9 acres (36,000 m) in Philadelphia . In addition to its Western and fashion hats, Stetson also produces fragrance, apparel, footwear, eyewear, belts, bourbon, and other products evoking
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#17327717271121164-533: A highly qualified status that treated them as valuable military assets without the designation or retirement benefits of officers. Nevertheless, they were treated as high-ranking military officials and had status of officers alongside their native American brethren. The brief argued for retroactive restoration of the Medal of Honor to Buffalo Bill, and the Department of Defense required the appeal to be adjudicated by
1261-403: A lone dispatch courier from Fort Larned to Fort Zarah (escaping brief capture), Fort Zarah to Fort Hays, Fort Hays to Fort Dodge , Fort Dodge to Fort Larned, and, finally, Fort Larned to Fort Hays, a total of 350 miles in 58 hours through hostile territory, covering the last 35 miles on foot. In response, General Philip Sheridan assigned him Chief of Scouts for the 5th Cavalry Regiment . He
1358-462: A noted hunter, scout, and interpreter, used a fast-shooting Henry repeating rifle , while Cody competed with a larger-caliber Springfield Model 1866 , which he called Lucretia Borgia , after the notorious Italian noblewoman, the subject of a popular contemporary Gaetano Donizetti opera Lucrezia Borgia , based on Victor Hugo 's play of the same name. Cody explained that while his formidable opponent, Comstock, chased after his buffalo, engaging from
1455-572: A planned visit to his family and plotted to kill him on the way. Bill, despite his youth and being ill at the time, rode thirty miles (48 km) to warn his father. Isaac Cody went to Cleveland , Ohio , to organize a group of thirty families to bring back to Kansas, to add to the antislavery population. During his return trip, he caught a respiratory infection which, compounded by the lingering effects of his stabbing and complications from kidney disease, led to his death in April 1857. After his death,
1552-479: A rugged hat for himself made from thick beaver felt while panning for gold in Colorado. According to legend, Stetson invented the hat while on a hunting trip while showing his companions how he could make cloth out of fur without tanning. Fur felt hats are lighter, they maintain their shape, and withstand weather and renovation better. Stetson made an unusually large hat from felt he made from hides collected on
1649-796: A visit from King Edward VII and the future King George V. The Wild West traveled throughout Great Britain in a tour in 1902 and 1903 and a tour in 1904, performing in nearly every city large enough to support it. The 1905 tour began in April with a two-month run in Paris, after which the show traveled around France, performing mostly one-night stands, concluding in December. The final tour, in 1906, began in France on March 4 and quickly moved to Italy for two months. The show then traveled east, performing in Austro-Hungarian territories of Bohemia (now
1746-499: Is especially prominent during the Calgary Stampede . John B. Stetson Company Stetson resumed manufacturing in the 1980s, but the company went bankrupt in 1986. The factory equipment and the license to manufacture Stetson hats was purchased by Hat Brands, a company owned by Irving Joel. The John B. Stetson Company was established in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , in 1865 when John B. Stetson decided to mass-produce
1843-525: Is killed by Stack A Lee over a Stetson hat. Troopers of modern-day U.S. Army cavalry regiments will often wear a Cavalry Stetson on ceremonial occasions in place of the ACU patrol cap or beret. The Homicide and Robbery Bureau of the Dallas Police used the Stetson hat as a badge of office. In addition, on April Fools' Day, 2011, the U.S. Army released a humorous statement that the official black beret of
1940-580: The Battle of Little Big Horn wearing a Stetson. Later on, Western movie cowboys were quick to adopt the Stetson; many were drawn to the largest, most flamboyant styles available. Texans were known for their preference for the "Ten Gallon" model. According to Win Blevins' Dictionary of the American West (p. 388), the term "ten-gallon" has nothing to do with the hat's liquid capacity but derives from
2037-602: The Czech Republic ) and Croatia-Slavonia , before returning west to tour in Galicia (now part of Poland ), then Germany, and Belgium. The show was enormously successful in Europe, making Cody an international celebrity and an American icon. Mark Twain commented, "It is often said on the other side of the water that none of the exhibitions which we send to England are purely and distinctly American. If you will take
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#17327717271122134-769: The Mormon population of Salt Lake City . According to Cody's account in Buffalo Bill's Own Story , the Utah War was where he began his career as an "Indian fighter": Presently the moon rose, dead ahead of me; and painted boldly across its face was the figure of an Indian. He wore this war-bonnet of the Sioux , at his shoulder was a rifle pointed at someone in the river-bottom 30 feet [9 meters] below; in another second he would drop one of my friends. I raised my old muzzle-loader and fired. The figure collapsed, tumbled down
2231-553: The Wild West show over there you can remove that reproach." The Wild West brought an exotic foreign world to life for its European audiences, allowing a last glimpse at the fading American frontier. Several members of the Wild West show died of accidents or disease during these tours in Europe: In 1895, Cody was instrumental in the founding of the town of Cody , the seat of Park County , in northwestern Wyoming . Today
2328-485: The aristocratic Booth family . It was at this time Buffalo Bill's Cowboy Band was organized. The band was directed by William Sweeney, a cornet player who served as leader of the Cowboy Band from 1883 until 1913. Sweeney handled all of the musical arrangements and wrote a majority of the music performed by the Cowboy Band. In 1893, Cody changed the title to Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders of
2425-439: The "Boss of the Plains," along with over 100 variations for men and women. The Philadelphia factory, incorporated in 1891, produced dress hats for both women and men. Employing over 5,000 workers in various departments, the company turned out more hats than any other during the early 20th century. The Stetson Company was considered especially innovative for its time. The production of high-quality hat boxes became associated with
2522-407: The 1870s through the early part of the twenty first century. Playwright Frederick G. Maeder adapted Buntline's novel into the hit play Buffalo Bill which premiered at Niblo's Garden in 1872 with J. B. Studley in the title role. Cody attended this play while visiting New York which gave him the idea to portray himself on the stage. He later became world-famous for Buffalo Bill's Wild West ,
2619-554: The 1930s to 1950s. Hat sales suffered during the Depression years, but Stetsons remained ubiquitous until Americans' embrace of headwear faded after WWII. Stetson had operations in Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Finland, Guatemala, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, and West Germany at its peak. Stetson changed its business strategy in the early 1970s, closing its Philadelphia factory in 1971 and continuing in
2716-504: The 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, a hat was an indispensable item in every man's wardrobe. Stetson focused on expensive, high-quality hats that represented a real investment for the working cowboy and a statement of success for the city dweller. Early on, Stetson hats became associated with legends of the West, including " Buffalo Bill ", Calamity Jane , Will Rogers , and Annie Oakley . George Custer allegedly rode into
2813-607: The 23-year-old Cody met Ned Buntline , who later published a story based on Cody's adventures (largely invented by the writer) in Street and Smith's New York Weekly and then published a highly successful novel, Buffalo Bill, King of the Bordermen , which was first serialized on the front page of the Chicago Tribune , beginn ing that December 15. Many other sequels followed by Buntline, Prentiss Ingraham and others from
2910-606: The American Exhibition, which coincided with the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria . The Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII , requested a private preview of the Wild West performance; he was impressed enough to arrange a command performance for Queen Victoria . The Queen enjoyed the show and meeting the performers, setting the stage for another command performance on June 20, 1887, for her Jubilee guests. Royalty from all over Europe attended, including
3007-559: The Army Board for Correction of Military Records. After months of deliberation, the Board agreed with the persuasive legal brief and made the decision to restore the Medal of Honor, not only to Buffalo Bill but also several other civilian scouts whose medals had also been rescinded. Long after the medal was restored, the decision was thought to be controversial for several reasons. Some people interpreted Simpson's submission as arguing that
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3104-659: The Army would be replaced by Stetsons. The statement was supplemented by pictures of soldiers with Stetsons photoshopped over their berets, including an Army dog toting a Stetson. The Legion of Frontiersmen created in 1905 in England also wore the Stetson, as well as the South African Constabulary , organized by Robert Baden-Powell in 1901. In the Second Boer War , the flat-brimmed Stetson became
3201-630: The East End Exhibition Building, and George C. Crager sold The Ghost Shirt to the Kelvingrove Museum . The show's 1892 tour was confined to Great Britain; it featured another command performance for Queen Victoria. The tour finished with a six-month run in London before leaving Europe for nearly a decade. Buffalo Bill's Wild West returned to Europe in December 1902 with a fourteen-week run in London, capped by
3298-608: The Indians; and John Shangren, a native interpreter. In 1891, Buffalo Bill performed in Karlsruhe , Germany, in the Südstadt Quarter. The inhabitants of Südstadt are nicknamed Indianer (German for "American Indians") to this day, and the most accepted theory says that this is due to Buffalo Bill's show. In October Cody brought the show to Dennistoun , Glasgow , where it ran from November 16 until February 27, 1892, in
3395-523: The Old Trail Town museum is at the center of the community and commemorates the traditions of Western life. Cody first passed through the region in the 1870s. He was so impressed by the development possibilities from irrigation, rich soil, grand scenery, hunting, and proximity to Yellowstone Park that he returned in the mid-1890s to start a town. Streets in the town were named after his associates: Beck, Alger, Rumsey, Bleistein, and Salsbury. The town
3492-508: The Prairie , one of the original Wild West shows produced by Ned Buntline . The effort was panned by critics – one critic compared Cody's acting to a "diffident schoolboy" – but the performer was a hit with the sold-out crowds. In 1873, Cody invited "Wild Bill" Hickok to join the group in a new play called Scouts of the Plains . Hickok did not enjoy acting and often hid behind scenery; in one show, he shot at
3589-585: The Revolutionary War, when Congress decided to create a hierarchy of medals, designating the "Medal of Honor" as the highest military honor it could bestow. Subsequent regulations authorized the War Department to revoke prior Medal of Honor awards it considered not meeting requirements since the introduction of strict regulations promulgated under the 1917 law. Those regulations required the medal to be awarded for acts of bravery above and beyond
3686-865: The Saline River ) and Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer (guide and impromptu horse race to Fort Larned ). It was during this service at Fort Ellsworth that he met William Rose, with whom he would found the short-lived settlement of Rome . In 1867, with the construction of the Kansas Pacific Railway completing through Hays City and Rome, Cody was granted a leave of absence to hunt buffalo to supply railroad construction workers with meat. This endeavor continued into 1868, which saw his hunting contest with William Comstock. Cody returned to Army service in 1868. From his post in Fort Larned , he performed an exceptional feat of riding as
3783-626: The South of France and Barcelona , Spain, then on to Italy. While in Rome, a Wild West delegation was received by Pope Leo XIII . Buffalo Bill was disappointed that the condition of the Colosseum did not allow it to be a venue; however, at Verona , the Wild West did perform in the ancient Roman amphitheater . The tour finished with stops in Austria-Hungary and Germany . In 1891
3880-474: The Spanish word galón (braid), ten indicating the number of braids used as a hatband. However, an early Stetson advertising image, a painting of a cowboy dipping his hat into a stream to provide water for his horse, symbolized the cowboy hat as an essential part of a stockman 's gear and was later featured inside every western style hat. Stetson also produced women's hats, operating a millinery department from
3977-622: The Stetson family, although by 1968 he would have majority interest in the Stetson Company. In the early 1970s, the factory in Philadelphia shut down. Even though the clock tower, gymnasium, auditorium, and fitting room were saved from destruction, they burned down in 1980. John B. Stetson quickly gained a reputation as an employer driven by religious morals. He ran the Stetson Company in a paternalistic fashion designed to provide benefits for workers, increase profits, and discourage unionization. The Stetson Company provided many benefits for
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4074-470: The Stetson mark. Currently, the brand carries western hats, fashion hats, fragrances, eyewear, apparel, footwear, belts, accessories, and bourbon. Stetson is available in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and Asia. The hat was first sold in Central City, Colorado in 1865 in a style called the "Boss of the Plains." In some versions of the famous American folk ballad " Stagger Lee ," Billy Lyons
4171-419: The Stetson name. These hat boxes depicted Christmas imagery or famous Philadelphia institutions. The company also spread its reputation using marketing techniques and the recording of industrial films promoting its process and product. Hats and copies of the film Birth of a Hat , produced by the Company itself and showing the hat-making process, were distributed to merchants and popular conventions where feedback
4268-636: The Union from 1863 to the end of the war in 1865. Later he served as a civilian scout for the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars . While he was initially awarded the Medal of Honor in 1872 for his actions in the Indian Wars, he was among 910 recipients to have the award rescinded in 1917. Congress reinstated the medals for Cody and four other civilian scouts in 1989. Cody was born on February 26, 1846, on
4365-696: The United States in May 1888 for a short summer tour. Buffalo Bill's Wild West returned to Europe in May 1889 as part of the Exposition Universelle in Paris, an event that commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille and featured the debut of the Eiffel Tower . On this tour, his portrait was painted by Europe's leading female painter Rosa Bonheur . The tour moved to
4462-572: The World . The show began with a parade on horseback, with participants from horse-culture groups that included the US and another military, cowboys , American Indians , and performers from all over the world in their best attire. Turks , gauchos , Arabs , Mongols and Georgians displayed their distinctive horses and colorful costumes. Visitors would see main events, feats of skill, staged races, and sideshows. Many historical western figures participated in
4559-595: The assistance of the artist and rancher Abraham Archibald Anderson . Cody established the TE Ranch , located on the south fork of the Shoshone River about thirty-five miles from Cody. When he acquired the TE property, he stocked it with cattle sent from Nebraska and South Dakota. The new herd carried the TE brand. The late 1890s were relatively prosperous years for the Wild West show, and he bought more land to add to
4656-489: The authority to reinstate the medal directly, and so decided to return the case to the board for reconsideration. As a result, the board amended Cody's record to make him an enlisted soldier – aligning it with the legal argument that civilian scouts were the equivalent to officers or enlisted soldiers – so that he would fall within the legal requirements and did the same for four other civilian guides who had also had their medals rescinded. In doing so,
4753-544: The bank and landed with a splash in the water. "What is it?" called McCarthy, as he hurried back. "It's over there in the water." "Hi!" he cried. "Little Billy's killed an Indian all by himself!" So began my career as an Indian fighter. At the age of 14, in 1860, Cody was caught up in the "gold fever", with news of gold at Fort Colville and the Holcomb Valley Gold Rush in California . On his way to
4850-542: The board overlooked the fact that Cody was a civilian guide with far greater employment flexibility than a soldier, including the ability to resign at will. Nevertheless the Board did recognize the value that all scouts provided, whether Native American or otherwise, and how they volunteered to put themselves in harm's way (in the case of Buffalo Bill, saving the lives of several soldiers by rushing onto an active battlefield and pulling them to safety while under fire) instead of pursuing less demanding civilian jobs. Cody received
4947-528: The cabinet level, the legal brief was written in conformance with the statutes. Modern Medal of Honor cases originating from the board, such as the recent case of Garlin Conner , required both executive action as well as a statutory waiver from Congress, which underscores the point that some cases might be in conflict with statutes. In the Cody case, the board's governing assistant secretary recognized that it lacked
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#17327717271125044-402: The call of duty by officers or enlisted soldiers. The law was enacted days before Buffalo Bill died, so he never knew a law might rescind the medal awarded to him. All civilian scout medals were rescinded since they did not appear to meet the basic criterion of being officers or enlisted soldiers, which had been expressly listed in every authorizing statute ever enacted for the Medal of Honor. Cody
5141-406: The cause in 1989. The legal brief he drafted and submitted to the Department of Defense on behalf of the relatives of Buffalo Bill argued that civilian scouts were technically officers, as their native American counterparts were nominally scouts. However, they were given the rank and pay of officers – both for retention purposes. Also, scouts were the equivalent of "reconnaissance" for
5238-414: The competition. Augusto Imperiali became a local hero after the event: a street and a monument were dedicated to him in his hometown, Cisterna di Latina , and he was featured as the hero in a series of comic strips in the 1920s and 1930s. Cody set up an independent exhibition near the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 , which greatly contributed to his popularity in the United States. It vexed the promoters of
5335-490: The day, Stetson decided to create a hat based on his experiences in the American West, which he called the " Boss of the Plains ". The high-crowned, wide-brimmed, soft-felt western hats that followed are intimately associated with the American cowboy image. The original "Boss", manufactured by Stetson in 1865, was flat-brimmed, had a straight-sided crown with rounded corners. These lightweight, waterproof hats were natural in color, with four-inch crowns and brims. A plain hatband
5432-443: The entire show train had passed, not realizing it was three units, and returned to the tracks; 110 horses, including his mounts Old Pap and Old Eagle, were killed in the crash or had to be killed later. Three young Native Americans were killed in the train accident and many others injured. Annie Oakley's injuries were so severe that she was told she would never walk again. She did recover and continued performing later. The incident put
5529-421: The fair, who had rejected his request to participate. In 1894, Edison Studios invited Buffalo Bill and his show to be filmed in an early silent film , Buffalo Bill . On October 29, 1901, outside Lexington, North Carolina , a freight train crashed into one unit of the train carrying Buffalo Bill's show from Charlotte, North Carolina , to Danville, Virginia . The freight train's engineer had thought that
5626-408: The family suffered financially. At age 11, Bill worked for the freight carrier Russel, Major, and Waddel as a "boy extra". On horseback, he would ride up and down the length of a wagon train and deliver messages between the drivers and workmen. Next, he joined Johnston's Army as an unofficial member of the scouts assigned to guide the United States Army to Utah , to put down a rumored rebellion by
5723-439: The future Kaiser Wilhelm II and the future King George V . These royal encounters provided Buffalo Bill's Wild West an endorsement and publicity that ensured its success. Also, at this time, Buffalo Bill was presented with written accolades from several of America's high ranking generals including William T. Sherman , Philip H. Sheridan and William H. Emory testifying to his service, bravery, and character. Among
5820-414: The goldfields, however, he met an agent for the Pony Express . He signed with them, and after building several stations and corrals, Cody was given a job as a rider. He worked at this until he was called home to his sick mother's bedside. Cody claimed to have had many jobs, including trapper , bullwhacker , " Fifty-Niner " in Colorado , Pony Express rider in 1860, wagonmaster, stagecoach driver, and
5917-444: The hat business through licensing arrangements with several manufacturers. Popular demand for western-style hats spiked during the 1980s after the success of Indiana Jones and Urban Cowboy movies. Both western and dress hats continue to be popular men's accessories. In the 1980s, Stetson began to diversify, releasing the first Stetson cologne in 1981 and Lady Stetson in 1986. Luggage, handbags, umbrellas, and scarves also carried
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#17327717271126014-437: The hat on for himself, and paid Stetson for it with a five dollar gold piece , riding off with the first western Stetson hat on his head. Stetson's western adventures came to an end in 1865. Stetson, then 35 years old and in better health, returned east and established his own hat firm in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , which produced high-quality hats for outdoor use. After producing some initial designs based on popular styles of
6111-478: The historic American West . Stetson University and Stetson University College of Law in Florida were named after John B. Stetson in 1899 for his contributions to the school. The university's athletic teams are known as the Hatters , and the official mascot is known as "John B." John B. Stetson was born in 1830 in Orange, New Jersey, where his father, Stephen Stetson, was a hatter. He worked in his father's shop until he went West for his health. Stetson created
6208-401: The law had never required Cody to be a soldier. However, this was never a key element of Simpson's brief. According to these interpretations, Simpson's submission cited a book, Above and Beyond , to illustrate the lack of requirement to be a soldier. However, it was recognized in the legal brief that Medal of Honor recipients had to be an officer or enlisted soldier. Another problem cited by some
6305-411: The law, but rather conforming the status of civilian scouts to that of other scouts similarly situated (source: copy of the actual legal brief, by the author). Since the Board of Correction is merely a delegation of the Secretary of the Army 's authority, some suggest a separation of powers conflict, since even the president cannot contravene a clear statute and, although Cody's case was dealt with below
6402-420: The license was transferred to another hat company in Texas. "Today's cowboy hat has remained basically unchanged in construction and design since the first one was created in 1865 by J.B. Stetson." Stetson also produced "dress" hats, distinguished from "western" hats by narrower brims and shorter crowns. However, his "Boss of the Plains" style hat and its many variants fueled the company's growth and fame. In
6499-408: The military and thus provided highly valued services. In addition, a practical reason was to avoid mistaking them for opponents in skirmishes. Moreover, although civilian scouts might have normally been officers because of their highly valued skills, the military drawdown and related budget cuts after the Civil War left no billets available for the civilian scouts to fill, and thus they were relegated to
6596-544: The most anticipated events at the Company surrounded the Christmas holiday. Employees gathered at the factory auditorium for an annual celebration that featured speeches from the Company President or Santa Claus, and a distribution of awards, bonuses, and gifts. These gifts and awards varied according to one's position at the company. Women received candy and gloves, married men received a Christmas turkey, and unmarried men were given hats. Many Stetson employees were immigrant hat-makers with reputations of moving around where work
6693-425: The name Stetson had become synonymous with the word "hat" almost everywhere in the West. By 1886, Stetson's hat company was the largest globally and had mechanized the hat-making industry ("producing close to 2 million hats a year by 1906"). The Stetson Hat Co. ceased production in 1968 and licensed another hat company. However, these hats still bear the Stetson name, with the hats produced in St. Joseph, Missouri. Later
6790-466: The nickname "Buffalo Bill" after the American Civil War, when he had a contract to supply Kansas Pacific Railroad workers with buffalo (American bison) meat. Cody is purported to have killed 4,282 buffalo in eighteen months in 1867 and 1868. Cody and another hunter, Bill Comstock, competed in an eight-hour buffalo-shooting match over the exclusive right to use the name, which Cody won by killing 68 animals to Comstock's 48. Comstock, part Cheyenne and
6887-527: The presentations was a document signed by Governor John M. Thayer of Nebraska appointing Cody as aide-de-camp on the Governor's staff with the rank of colonel dated March 8, 1887. The rank had little official authority but the English press quickly capitalized on the new title of "Colonel Cody". Buffalo Bill's Wild West closed its successful London run in October 1887 after more than 300 performances, with more than 2.5 million tickets sold. The tour made stops in Birmingham and Manchester before returning to
6984-447: The rear of the herd and leaving a trail of killed buffalo "scattered over a distance of three miles", Cody – likening his strategy to a billiards player "nursing" his billiard balls during "a big run" – first rode his horse to the front of the herd to target the leaders, forcing the followers to one side, eventually causing them to circle and create an easy target, and dropping them close together. In 1869,
7081-491: The short film, a series of adventures presented in flashback as Buffalo Bill's dreams. The film had two other directors before it was successfully completed by John B. O'Brien . The film is in the collection of the Library of Congress. Buffalo Bill's Wild West toured Europe eight times, the first four tours between 1887 and 1892, and the last four from 1902 to 1906. The Wild West first went to London in 1887 as part of
7178-623: The show out of business for a while, and this disruption may have led to its eventual demise. In 1908, Pawnee Bill and Buffalo Bill joined forces and created the Two Bills show. That show was foreclosed on when it was playing in Denver, Colorado. The Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill Film Company, based in New York City, produced a three-reel motion picture in 1912 titled The Life of Buffalo Bill . Cody himself appears in scenes that bookend
7275-832: The show to Great Britain in celebration of the Jubilee year of Queen Victoria , who attended a performance. It played in London and then in Birmingham and Salford , near Manchester , where it stayed for five months. In 1889, the show toured Europe, and, in 1890, Cody met Pope Leo XIII . On March 8, 1890, a competition took place. Buffalo Bill had met some Italian butteri (a less-well-known sort of Italian equivalent of cowboys) and said his men were more skilled at roping calves and performing other similar actions. A group of Buffalo Bill's men challenged nine butteri , led by Augusto Imperiali [ it ] , at Prati di Castello neighbourhood in Rome. The butteri easily won
7372-633: The show toured cities in Belgium and the Netherlands before returning to Great Britain to close the season. Cody depended on several staffs to manage arrangements for touring with the large and complex show: in 1891 Major Arizona John Burke was the general manager for the Buffalo Bill Wild West Company; William Laugan [ sic ], supply agent; George C. Crager, Sioux interpreter, considered leader of relations with
7469-505: The show was Calamity Jane , as a storyteller as of 1893. The show influenced many 20th-century portrayals of the West in cinema and literature. With his profits, Cody purchased a 4,000-acre (16-km²) ranch near North Platte , Nebraska, in 1886. The Scout's Rest Ranch included an eighteen-room mansion and a large barn for winter storage of the show's livestock. In 1887, invited by the British businessman John Robinson Whitley , Cody took
7566-462: The show. For example, Sitting Bull appeared with a band of 20 of his soldiers. Cody's headline performers were well-known in their own right. Annie Oakley and her husband, Frank Butler , were sharpshooters, together with the likes of Gabriel Dumont and Lillian Smith . Performers re-enacted the riding of the Pony Express , Indian attacks on wagon trains, and stagecoach robberies. The show
7663-479: The spotlight when it focused on him. He was therefore released from the group after a few months. Cody founded the Buffalo Bill Combination in 1874, in which he performed for part of the year while scouting on the prairies the rest of the year. The troupe toured for ten years. Cody's part typically included a reenactment of an 1876 incident at Warbonnet Creek , where he claimed to have scalped
7760-754: The standard issue of the 2nd Canadian Contingent , becoming recognized throughout the British Empire as a symbol of Canada . Twelve hundred Canadian troops were part of the South African Constabulary under the leadership of Robert Baden-Powell , and it was after seeing these troops in action at the Relief of Mafeking that Baden-Powel ordered 10,000 of these hats for the British Troops under his command. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Red Serge dress uniform includes
7857-536: The time such as prizes, Christmas bonuses, shared stock, pensions, and membership to a building association as well as access to Stetson facilities. These facilities serviced several aspects of an employee's life. In the early 1900s, Stetson added a company library, dentist, hospital, auditorium, and athletic fields for recreational use. The John B. Stetson Building Association assisted over 1,000 employees to purchase homes, and over 2,000 children of employees attended Sunday School or Kindergarten on company grounds. One of
7954-404: The trip and wore the hat for the remainder of the expedition. Although initially worn as a joke, Stetson soon grew fond of the hat for its ability to protect him from the elements. It had a wide brim, a high crown to keep an insulating pocket of air on the head, and was used to carry water. As their travels continued, a cowboy is said to have seen J. B. Stetson and his unusual hat, rode up, tried
8051-546: Was a sizable number of union workers at the Philadelphia factory during the early 1900s. They were ordered to leave the factory by their union and work at shops instead. Some of these workers demanded to stay on until Christmas when they received their bonuses and this was generally allowed. However, the attraction of an end of year bonus was so great that many returned to the factory as non-union workers. Buffalo Bill William Frederick Cody (February 26, 1846 – January 10, 1917), known as Buffalo Bill ,
8148-656: Was also Chief of Scouts for the Third Cavalry in later campaigns of the Plains Wars . In January 1872, Cody was a scout for the highly publicized hunting expedition of the Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia . Cody was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1872 for documented gallantry above and beyond the call of duty as an Army scout in the Indian Wars. It was revoked in 1917, along with medals of 910 other recipients dating back to
8245-519: Was an American soldier, bison hunter , and showman . One of the most famous and well-known figures of the American Old West , Cody started his legend at the young age of 23. Shortly thereafter he started performing in shows that displayed cowboy themes and episodes from the frontier and Indian Wars. He founded Buffalo Bill's Wild West in 1883, taking his large company on tours in the United States and, beginning in 1887, in Europe. He
8342-667: Was born in Le Claire , Iowa Territory (now the U.S. state of Iowa ), but he lived for several years in his father's hometown in modern-day Mississauga , Ontario , before the family returned to the Midwest and settled in the Kansas Territory . Buffalo Bill started working at the age of 11, after his father's death, and became a rider for the Pony Express at age 15. During the American Civil War , he served
8439-531: Was donated by Philip Cody of Toronto Township. They lived in Ontario for several years. In 1853, Isaac Cody sold his land in rural Scott County, Iowa , for $ 2,000 (equivalent to $ 73,248 in 2023) , and the family moved to Fort Leavenworth , Kansas Territory . In the years before the Civil War, Kansas was overtaken by political and physical conflict over the slavery question. Isaac Cody was against slavery. He
8536-462: Was fitted to adjust head size. The sweatband bore John B. Stetson's name. Stetson sent a sample hat to merchants throughout the Southwest with a letter asking for a minimum order of a dozen "Boss of the Plains" hats. The hat was an immediate success: in less than a year, Stetson set up a new factory in the outskirts of Philadelphia to handle his growing business. According to Bender, within a decade
8633-568: Was incorporated in 1901. In November 1902, Cody opened the Irma Hotel , named after his daughter. He envisioned a growing number of tourists coming to Cody on the recently opened Burlington rail line. He expected that they would proceed up Cody Road, along the north fork of the Shoshone River, to visit Yellowstone Park. To accommodate travelers, Cody completed the construction of the Wapiti Inn and Pahaska Tepee in 1905 along Cody Road with
8730-528: Was invited to speak at Rively's store, a local trading post where pro-slavery men often held meetings. His antislavery speech so angered the crowd that they threatened to kill him if he did not step down. A man jumped up and stabbed him twice with a Bowie knife . Rively, the store's owner, rushed Cody to get treatment, but he never fully recovered from his injuries. In Kansas, the family was frequently persecuted by pro-slavery supporters. Cody's father spent time away from home for his safety. His enemies learned of
8827-527: Was one of five scouts affected. Their medals were stripped shortly after Cody died in 1917. Cody's relatives objected, and, for over 72 years, they wrote repeatedly to the US Congress seeking reconsideration. All efforts failed, until a 1988 letter to the Senate from Cody's grandson received by the office of senator Alan K. Simpson of Wyoming, when a newly assigned legislative assistant (K. Yale) took up
8924-634: Was plentiful. The Stetson Company, to encourage yearlong work and a high retention rate, offered immigrants a portion of annual earnings as a Christmas bonus, increasing each successive year. Some of these immigrant workers were able to learn English and become U.S. citizens, partly due to the "Americanization" classes the Company offered. Highly specialized positions in the factory utilized the apprentice system. Those recruited to an apprenticeship signed contracts valid until they had reached eighteen years old or completed three years of work. While under contract, they agreed to abstain from gambling or marriage. Pay
9021-605: Was recorded and used to make future product. The first significant change in the Company occurred after John B. Stetson's death in February 1906. His position as president of the company was filled by J. Howell Cummings. Stetson sales declined dramatically in the 1950s and 1960s. Between 1947 and 1968, revenues sharply dropped from around 29 million dollars to about 8 million dollars. Members of John B. Stetson's family eventually decided to sell company stock. Ira Guilden, who controlled Ramco Enterprises Inc., came into conflict with
9118-452: Was said to end with a re-enactment of Custer's Last Stand , in which Cody portrayed General Custer, but this is more legend than fact. The finale was typically a portrayal of an Indian attack on a settler's cabin. Cody would ride in with an entourage of cowboys to defend a settler and his family. This finale was featured predominantly as early as 1886 but was not performed after 1907; it was used in 23 of 33 tours. Another celebrity appearing on
9215-408: Was the authority of the Board to contravene several federal statutes because the Medal of Honor revocation had been expressly authorized by Congress, meaning that the restoration went against the law in force in 1872, the law requiring the revocation in 1916, and the modern statute enacted in 1918 that remains substantially unmodified today. However, the legal brief clearly did not suggest overturning of
9312-535: Was to carry messages on horseback from the firm's office in Leavenworth to the telegraph station three miles away. After his mother recovered, Cody wanted to enlist as a soldier in the Union Army during the American Civil War but was refused because of his young age. He began working with a freight caravan that delivered supplies to Fort Laramie in present-day Wyoming. In 1863, at age 17, he enlisted as
9409-399: Was two dollars per week with an additional dollar for every week worked after the contract was fulfilled. Many apprentices became full-time employees and had the potential to become a foreman due to their loyalty to the Stetson brand. John B. Stetson's tradition of providing annual bonuses, Christmas gifts, and facilities for employees were an active attempt to dissuade unions. However, there
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