The Straw Hat Riot

Who would have ever thought a hat could cause a riot. Nevertheless, through the years, fashion has played a big part in the lives of people, especially those in the higher social circles. Enter the straw hat craze. Straw hats first emerged in the 19th century as popular summertime wear, often associated with activities like boating, which gave rise to the term “boater.” That in itself meant that it was going to be for the wealthier social class. Soft Panama hats, inspired by tropical attire, also became informal summer wear. That’s were things began to get hinky. Initially, it was considered improper for men to wear these hats in big cities during summer, although women’s hats followed different trends. Then as the early 20th century arrived, straw boaters were deemed suitable daytime attire in North American cities during summer, even for businessmen. However, an unwritten rule dictated that straw hats should not be worn past September 15, a date known as “Felt Hat Day.”

The date was initially set as September 1st, but it later shifted to mid-month. When a stockbroker made the mistake of wearing the straw hat beyond the September 15th date, other stockbrokers could destroy each other’s hats because they were considered “companions,” but this behavior wasn’t acceptable among strangers. Any man wearing a straw hat risked ridicule, as it became a tradition for youths to knock straw hats off wearers’ heads and stomp on them. The custom grew so popular that newspapers often warned about the fifteenth’s approach, when men had to switch to felt or silk hats. Although hat bashing was only socially acceptable after September 15, there were several incidents beforehand where police had to step in to stop teenagers, who seemed to think they could “jump the gun” so to speak.

The “Straw Hat Riot” of 1922 began on September 13, 1922, two days before the supposed unspoken date, when a group of youths decided to get an early jump on the tradition. This group started in Manhattan’s old “Mulberry Bend” area by snatching and stomping on the hats of factory workers in the neighborhood. What began as harmless mischief escalated into a fight when they targeted a group of dock workers, who fought back. The scuffle grew so intense that it disrupted traffic on the Manhattan Bridge before police intervened, making several arrests. Although the initial fight was dispersed by police, the violence escalated the following evening. Groups of teenagers roamed the streets armed with large sticks, some with nails at the top for grabbing hats, targeting pedestrians wearing straw hats and attacking those who resisted. One man reported that his hat was taken, and the group who stole it joined a mob of around 1,000 people snatching hats along Amsterdam Avenue.

Several men ended up hospitalized from the beatings they suffered after resisting attempts to have their hats taken. Numerous arrests followed. Police were slow to respond to the riots, though several off-duty officers got caught in the chaos when rioters tried to snatch their hats. A few boys were confronted by pedestrians accusing them of smashing their straw hats, leading to their arrest. Many of those brought to court over the hat-snatching frenzy chose to pay fines instead of serving jail time. The longest jail sentence recorded was three days, served by a teen named A Silverman, who was sentenced by Magistrate Peter Hatting during night court.

In one incident, a group of boys armed with sticks attacked people near 109th Street. Seven youths, all under 15, were taken to the East 104th Street police station but not arrested. Instead, their parents were summoned to administer corporal punishment. After handling the initial riot, all stations were alerted to watch for hat-snatching teenagers. EC Jones reported seeing nearly 1,000 teenagers in a mob on Amsterdam Avenue. One victim, Harry Gerber, was beaten so severely he had to be hospitalized. The decline of such activity likely coincided with the fading tradition of switching from straw to felt hats seasonally. While Panama hats remained popular in the 1930s, the straw boater fell out of fashion. By the 1950s, the classic straw boater was nearly extinct, except for specific uses like uniforms for English public schools or university sportswear. Amazing what a simple straw hat can cause!!