German & Austrian Hutmachers

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Matt, Thank you! Other than the two "Aquila" Stiff Felts there is only one other original BGH brand hat that I am aware of and it's also a Stiff Felt that belongs to Stadt- und Industriemuseum Guben.

https://germanaustrianhats.invision...ubener-hutfabrik/?do=findComment&comment=1783

I made a list of the WWII era and older no company brand Wool hats that might have been produced by BGH. I will update the list and send it to you again. From what I can remember you made a connection with the 3 gate / tower Guben coat of arms with one of the hats. There are also the similar paper labels. This "Dogma" brand Wool Soft Felt is a recent example. Did you see this hat?

https://germanaustrianhats.invision...ubener-hutfabrik/?do=findComment&comment=3150

Thanks for your answer, Steve: BGH history seems really exciting because it is probably so representative of the history of hat making in the late 19th and early 20th century - not only (Daniele told us similar things e.g. from Monza), but also in Germany. There is still much to discover...

 

[mayserwegener]

Anton Peschel Dinkelsbühl "Norma", 59 cm, early 1960s.

Open Crown

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Anton Peschel Dinkelsbühl "Norma", 59 cm, early 1960s.

Open Crown

Nice one, Steve! I especially love the name of the seller: Carl Schluckebier = Carl Sip beer

 

[mayserwegener]

Nice one, Steve! I especially love the name of the seller: Carl Schluckebier = Carl Sip beer

Matt, Thanks! I want his surname.

 

[steur]

Anton Peschel Dinkelsbühl "Norma", 59 cm, early 1960s.

Open Crown

Excellent find, Steve.

 

[mayserwegener]

Excellent find, Steve.

Stefan, Thank you! I wore it this evening.

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Stefan, Thank you! I wore it this evening.

Hopefully for sipping beer!?

 

[mayserwegener]

Hopefully for sipping beer!?

Matt, Forgot the beer!

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Today: The opera hat - chapeau claque - Klappzylinder
from the possession of my grandfather with associated hat box.
In this hat he married my grandmother in 1951, however I assume
that this hat originally belonged to my great-grandfather,
as I believe it dates from the 1920s:

"Garantie-Klapphut" of the company "F.W.G.", as can be seen
from the initials in the logo on the lining and hat box.
I have so far no idea which company this is, but the collapsible hats
of this company can be found quite often on the net.
Maybe Steve or Steve know more...!?

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

The other topper I would like to present was owned by my other grandfather:
neither previously owned by the family nor did anyone get married under it,
rather my grandpa, who was a great carnivalist, took a lot of old clothes
from people of the village to use for carnival. So over the decades he had
gathered a huge fund of stuff, from which also this top hat comes.
The hat box in turn, however, does not belong to it, but it is again from
the estate of the other grandfather and in it I found the opera hat.

No-name top hat with british coat of arms - maybe older than the other one.
I also believe - despite the so often used British-English coat of arms
- that it is a German product... But who knows exactly.
Unfortunately someone tried to make a collapsible hat out of this one too...
The usual and so common hat box is from Paul Pfab from Oelsnitz in the Erzgebirge
(where this part of the family comes from)

 

[Steve1857]

The other topper I would like to present was owned by my other grandfather:
neither previously owned by the family nor did anyone get married under it,
rather my grandpa, who was a great carnivalist, took a lot of old clothes
from people of the village to use for carnival. So over the decades he had
gathered a huge fund of stuff, from which also this top hat comes.
The hat box in turn, however, does not belong to it, but it is again from
the estate of the other grandfather and in it I found the folding hat.

No-name top hat with british coat of arms - maybe older than the other one.
I also believe - despite the so often used British-English coat of arms
- that it is a German product... But who knows exactly.
Unfortunately someone tried to make a collapsible hat out of this one too...
The usual and so common hat box is from Paul Pfab from Oelsnitz in the Erzgebirge
(where this part of the family comes from)

It's history and scars are all part of its delight, Matt. Love the brim shape.

 

[mayserwegener]

Hello Matt,

Great background histories! Both are fantastic!

This is for the Klapphut.

Felix Weissbach Klapphut Fabrik, Glauchau i Sa. (Saxony)

DHZ April 11, 1925

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Hello Matt,

Great background histories! Both are fantastic!

This is for the Klapphut.

Felix Weissbach Klapphut Fabrik, Glauchau i Sa. (Saxony)

DHZ April 11, 1925

Again, thank you very much for the information, Steve! It is fantastic and always a pleasure to be allowed to participate in your knowledge and your collection. Did you know this before or did you do extra research "in your library"?

Interesting is - to come back to the family history - that my grandparents in the 1960s moved from originally Oelsnitz (Erzgebirge - where the other hat box is from) to Glauchau, where this Klapphut comes from, which was certainly bought before the war in Oelsnitz possibly at Paul Pfab. I am quite excited that again a little mystery is solved.

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

In addition a short research to Felix Weissbach Glauchau:

Rudolf Felix Weissbach born in Glauchau on 30 Aug 1868, passed away on 27 Feb 1935 in Glauchau.
Parents: Franz Robert Weißbach and Clara Auguste Leonhardt
Wife: Ida Franziska Helene Grosse (3 children)

"In 1889, Felix Weissbach founded a Klapphut factory at Brüderstraße 17a and laid the foundation for a new German industry. The trained hatter had previously been on the road as far as France, as was the custom in the past. He had looked over the shoulders of various hatters at work and worked with them. It was there that Weissbach discovered the new type of folding hats.

From then on, he wanted to produce them in better quality in his own factory. The folding hats became an absolute hit. As early as 1896, Weissbach moved production (including silk weaving and sewing) to the newly built factory in Schönburgstrasse. His villa is also there.

Weissbach laid the foundation for a new German industry. His company with 550 employees developed into the largest Klapphut factory in Europe, probably even in the world. After World War I, 75% of all opera hats worldwide came from Glauchau. During World War II, the company, like many others, was forced into armaments production."

translated from
https://www.geocaching.com/geocache...sen?guid=35837820-6dba-406e-90da-19c1a77e4199

Deutsche Kürschner-Zeitung No. 25 - 08.12.1912

 

[mayserwegener]

Again, thank you very much for the information, Steve! It is fantastic and always a pleasure to be allowed to participate in your knowledge and your collection. Did you know this before or did you do extra research "in your library"?

Interesting is - to come back to the family history - that my grandparents in the 1960s moved from originally Oelsnitz (Erzgebirge - where the other hat box is from) to Glauchau, where this Klapphut comes from, which was certainly bought before the war in Oelsnitz possibly at Paul Pfab. I am quite excited that again a little mystery is solved.

Matt, Thanks again. I had to check through my mini library but I was aware of Felix Weissbach Klapphut. I am sure I have other print advertisements. That is great that your grandparents lived in Glauchau and would have known about the factory.

 

[mayserwegener]

In addition a short research to Felix Weissbach Glauchau:

Rudolf Felix Weissbach born in Glauchau on 30 Aug 1868, passed away on 27 Feb 1935 in Glauchau.
Parents: Franz Robert Weißbach and Clara Auguste Leonhardt
Wife: Ida Franziska Helene Grosse (3 children)

"In 1889, Felix Weissbach founded a Klapphut factory at Brüderstraße 17a and laid the foundation for a new German industry. The trained hatter had previously been on the road as far as France, as was the custom in the past. He had looked over the shoulders of various hatters at work and worked with them. It was there that Weissbach discovered the new type of folding hats.

From then on, he wanted to produce them in better quality in his own factory. The folding hats became an absolute hit. As early as 1896, Weissbach moved production (including silk weaving and sewing) to the newly built factory in Schönburgstrasse. His villa is also there.

Weissbach laid the foundation for a new German industry. His company with 550 employees developed into the largest Klapphut factory in Europe, probably even in the world. After World War I, 75% of all opera hats worldwide came from Glauchau. During World War II, the company, like many others, was forced into armaments production."

translated from
https://www.geocaching.com/geocache...sen?guid=35837820-6dba-406e-90da-19c1a77e4199

Deutsche Kürschner-Zeitung No. 25 - 08.12.1912

Matt, Thank you for this fantastic information! I will make a Felix Weissbach Glauchau Klapphut Fabrik page on my website. I wonder if any of the factory buildings / villa still exist?

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

Matt, Thank you for this fantastic information! I will make a Felix Weissbach Glauchau Klapphut Fabrik page on my website. I wonder if any of the factory buildings / villa still exist?

You're welcome, Steve: It always makes me happy when I can give something back.

I had already looked at your homepage, but found nothing. Only through a Google image search I came across this:
https://germanaustrianhats.invisionzone.com/topic/82-felix-weissbach-klapp-hutfabrik/

The villa - unlike the factory building itself - should still exist, but I haven't found a picture or anything so far.
However, the buildings that belonged to the (silk) weaving mill Felix Weissbach are probably still standing: He had several companies at different locations, but presumably the silk fabric for the Klapphüte, among other things, was produced here from 1923:
https://www.patifakte.de/artefakte_glauchau.htm

 

[mayserwegener]

You're welcome, Steve: It always makes me happy when I can give something back.

I had already looked at your homepage, but found nothing. Only through a Google image search I came across this:
https://germanaustrianhats.invisionzone.com/topic/82-felix-weissbach-klapp-hutfabrik/

The villa - unlike the factory building itself - should still exist, but I haven't found a picture or anything so far.
However, the buildings that belonged to the (silk) weaving mill Felix Weissbach are probably still standing: He had several companies at different locations, but presumably the silk fabric for the Klapphüte, among other things, was produced here from 1923:
https://www.patifakte.de/artefakte_glauchau.htm

Matt, I forgot about the Felix Weissbach calendar booklet. I guess that is why I was aware of Felix Weissbach. I will just add that page to my list and add your Klapphut. Good to see that the silk fabric mill is still standing.

 

[Mean Eyed Matt]

The latter homepage is a great repository of industrial culture, where you can find all kinds of information on still standing buildings, including those of the hat industry, sorted by city. Another example is the house Schmöllnsche Vorstadt 20 in Altenburg, on which the lettering "Gustav Engert - Hüte u. Mützen - Pelz=Waren" is/was still visible until at least 2014:
https://www.patifakte.de/artefakte_altenburg.htm

 

[mayserwegener]

The latter homepage is a great repository of industrial culture, where you can find all kinds of information on still standing buildings, including those of the hat industry, sorted by city. Another example is the house Schmöllnsche Vorstadt 20 in Altenburg, on which the lettering "Gustav Engert - Hüte u. Mützen - Pelz=Waren" is/was still visible until at least 2014:
https://www.patifakte.de/artefakte_altenburg.htm

Matt, Thanks! I found the Felix Weissbach Villa at Schönburgstrasse 59. There is a Bridal Shop and other rental units located in it now. The building to the far right side of the photo is the other villa. This photo is from an in active rental apartment advert.

https://mapio.net/expose/4470325/?gallery=1

Here is a photo of the villa from the article you quoted. The other villa can be seen at the far right side of the photo.

https://www.geocaching.com/geocache...sen?guid=35837820-6dba-406e-90da-19c1a77e4199

Robe de mariée is the bridal shop located in the villa.

Doesn't appear any of the main factory buildings are present. The other villa and standalone building are still present (but heavily modified).