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Fire Helmet, "Excelsior"
From the collection of National Museum of American History. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This early leather work hat with its low, dome-shaped crown, narrow brim, and lack of a company shield and shield holder, is vaguely reminiscent of eighteenth- and early-nineteenth-century “stovepipe-style” fire hats. Yet it also includes more modern features like combs and a curved, extended rear brim. Indicative of its hybrid, early-to-modern construction, this hat could date to as early as 1812 or as late as 1860. A large label printed inside the crown indicates that the hat belonged to the “Excelsior” Company, possibly of New York.
National Museum of American History’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineFire Helmet, "Excelsior". ca 1860. unknown. National Museum of American History, Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection. CC0.
