Vintage Biltmore Canadian Beaver Fedora Hat Plush Fur Felt Homberg Stetson Size 7 3/8

This is a wonderful plush homburg style hat made by Biltmore of Canada.  Biltmore was founded in 1917 and was Canada’s premier hat maker, rival to Stetson.  In fact, after Stetson (Canada) went on a Canadian acquisition binge during the 1960s, Biltmore was able to eliminate its main competitor by buying it in 1970.  In 1982, after Biltmore filed bankruptcy, Stetson (USA) bought the assets of Biltmore, before they themselves filed Chapter 11 in 1986.  The Biltmore brand was withdrawn from the market from 1982 until 1988, when a group of Canadian investors revived it.  Biltmore has always been a quality maker, even producing the Dobbs and Knox brands in Canada.

This hat is made in a high plush deep brown fur felt.  The brim is turned up at the edge to imitate a traditional homburg style.  The crown has a brown grosgrain band around its base.  The sweatband is gold stamped “Canadian Beaver Deluxe Finish”.  The tag identifies the style as being called “Prominade”, the colour as “Bel Brown” and sizes the hat as a 7 3/8 - it measures 23” around the sweat band and 8” by 6 3/4” across the opening.  The brim measures 2 1/2” in width and the crown measures 4 1/4” in height.  The hat is in very good condition - pre-owned, but very clean except for the original owner’s name written on the lining (see last close-up photo) - otherwise, this was well cared for and looks great.  This is a fabulous hat - sure to be noticed!