SF&D Engineer Hat

[Steve DeGaetano]

Check this out. This is only the second hat like this that I have seen. It's probably from the very first run of SF&D Engineer hats--rarer than hen's teeth. As a bonus, the hat is being auctioned by a non-profit charity that benefits abused children and their moms, so a good cause to boot.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/387607949048?_ ... R5qdyNrkZA

[CP173]

I saw that, too. I’m glad it benefits charity, but $5K is a steep price. Governor Knight’s grandson sold the actual hat the Governor wore on the opening day broadcast for half of that.

[Steve DeGaetano]

Thanks Michael. I'd never heard of one selling, so I really didn't know what a reasonable price might be.

[Steve DeGaetano]

Michael, both the hat at auction and my own have the hat manufacturer's label obscured by the SF&D patch. Do you know if Lee or Kromer made the hats? Someone else? I know Lee was the supplier later on, when the patches were smaller and the label visible.

[CP173]

It sure looks like Lee to me. I searched for "Sanforized hat 1955" and found images of Lee non-DRR hats from that era. The tag is on the lower front center and the part visible under the SF&D patch reads "(R) MA" and then "SANFORDIZED" beneath that. This is an exact match for Lee tags of that era.

This listing says it's a 1960's hat, but tag looks like those on all the other Lee hats I could find from the 1950's: https://www.flyingtigerantiques.com/gre ... r-cap.html If you zoom in on the tag, you'll see it's a perfect match for the one on the $5K hat.

Also, I didn't see any evidence that Kromer put their tags on the front center of the cap whereas Lee always did in the mid-20th Century.

Additionally, to my eye the width of the blue strips on the Lee hat are narrower than Kromer caps of the same vintage.

Finally, and this is addmittedly a weak inference, I'm not sure why the Park would switch from Kromer to Lee just a few years after opening.

[Steve DeGaetano]

Great insight and research, Michael. Thanks!

[Steve DeGaetano]

The hat’s price was reduced: $4,100 now.

[Steve DeGaetano]

Now an actual auction starting at $1,000.

[CP173]

Still WAY overpriced. There may be a sucker, er, collector out there who'll drop $1K on it. Closer to $500 is more realistic. I've seen original conductor hats with badges go for that.

[Steve DeGaetano]

As an owner of this same version, I’m curious what the final price will be.