Why Hats Fell Out of Favor With the General Public in the Middle of the 20th Century

warmbru curiosity explored why, after centuries of wearing hats, the trend fell out of favor in the middle of the 20th century. He explained that while both men and women wore hats for practical reasons, such as to keep the elements at bay, hats were also indicative of society and class.

Why did hats suddenly almost die out? Not completely but to a large extent. Let’s first consider why people wore them in the first place. The obvious answer was to protect themselves from the cold in the winter and the hot in the summer but this is not the full story. Throughout history hats have served as a fashion statement, an indicator of social status, a badge of your occupation or as a cultural identity 

He further remarked that the sudden drop in hat-wearing was due to a combination of things. Climate control inside houses, cars, and other transit made wearing a hat less necessary.

People spend far less time exposed to the elements. As people increasingly moved to urban areas and started using cars the practicality of wearing hats diminished. Hats can be cumbersome in cars and on public transport. Improvements in heating and air conditioning reduce the need for hats to provide warmth.

Also contributing to the decline was a more relaxed style of clothing, youth rebellion against society, the Women’s Movement, and a new fascination with hair styles.

There was an important shift towards more casual and relaxed dress so hats as a symbol of class and status were less important this was especially true among the younger generation…….improvements in hair care products and services made people more interested in showing off their hairstyles why spend a fortune at the hairdressers or the barber just to cover the end result with a hat?