Vintage Biltmore Royal Fedora Dark Brown Fur Felt 6 7/8 Small

This is a vintage men’s fedora 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 (Stetson) 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  The Biltmore brand was withdrawn from the market from 1982 until 1988, when a group of Canadian investors revived it.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.

The hat is made in a deep brown fur felt identified on the inventory tag as “Black Oak”. It has a medium width brim that can be worn up or down, as desired.  The crown has a narrow grosgrain band around its base that is decorated with a bow at the left side.  The top of the lining is stamped with the Biltmore logo and with text that reads “Biltmore Royal Made in Canada”  The sweatband is stamped “Made in Canada Genuine Leather”.  It  is sized as a 6 7/8 - it measures 21 5/8” around the sweatband and 6 1/4” by 7 1/2” across the opening.  The brim measures 2 3/8” in width at the front and 2” at the sides - the crown measures 4 5/8” in height.  The hat is in very good condition - looks like it saw little, if any, use.  This is a nice quality hat in a very attractive dark brown, almost black, tone - sure to be noticed!