Mcpherron & Sons

Mcpherron & Sons McPherron & Sons is sadly, no longer making reproduction Victorian military hats. We appreciate all past customers, but we can no longer continue.

For now the page will stay up, but only as a record of past work.

02/22/2025

We appreciate the inquiries, but we are no longer accepting orders. This page will remain up for now, as a record of past work only.

04/30/2020

Mcpherron & Sons will be taking a hiatus and is not accepting any new orders at this time - we hope to get back to hat-making later this year.

We had a very busy winter season 2017, 6 new bearskins and 4 officer's forage caps, 1 other rank's pillbox. So busy we f...
01/23/2018

We had a very busy winter season 2017, 6 new bearskins and 4 officer's forage caps, 1 other rank's pillbox. So busy we failed to get good images of all those new hats! But the bearskins are without a doubt, our best work to date, and as we work to clear the backlog of forage caps, those are turning out to be quite fantastic as well! Every year a bit more is learnt, and that learning applied to the new crop of hats.

This is a reproduction of the forage cap for an officer of the 23rd regiment of foot, the Royal Welch Fusiliers. The final photo shows an officer wearing such a cap in the 1870's.

After the cane framework is done, a felt base must be made. This is a strenuous step as the wool felt 'hood' requires qu...
10/24/2017

After the cane framework is done, a felt base must be made. This is a strenuous step as the wool felt 'hood' requires quite a lot of steaming and pulling over an oval wood hatblock to get the right shape. Once the felt is completely conformed to the hatblock, the top and bottom are cut off, leaving a felt 'headband'. This felt is then stiffened with a glue mixture and left to stiffen over the hatblock. Once the band has dried to shape, it is lightly moistened and using a vintage hat stretcher, it is stretched to its appropriate size and allowed to completely cure. Next the felt base, now completely rigid, is attached to the cane framework with heavy thread.
Many are surprised at how light the fairly massive hats are, but they are essentially a fitted fur bag over this lightweight cane and felt base.

Making a Foot Guards bearskin hat involves many steps, using a number of different skills. First, a cane frame is made w...
10/24/2017

Making a Foot Guards bearskin hat involves many steps, using a number of different skills. First, a cane frame is made with horizontal hoops of different sizes. These hoops are then joined to a vertical, and then diagonal, canes. This initial frame then has a series of verticals attached - all the canes are soaked and then joined with wire to a previously finished frame so that they take the shape needed for their position. Once the verticals have dried into their shapes, they are joined to the now completed frame.

Leather bearskin liner with logo pre-installation.
12/17/2015

Leather bearskin liner with logo pre-installation.

Complete with plume and chinchain.
12/17/2015

Complete with plume and chinchain.

Things have been busy, but we finally found time to finish v2.0 of our reproduction Foot Guards bearskin. Very pleased w...
12/17/2015

Things have been busy, but we finally found time to finish v2.0 of our reproduction Foot Guards bearskin. Very pleased with the results! The first is already in use and indistinguishable from original bearskins being worn. I think this one is even better. 8 more frames waiting to be covered....

McPherron & Sons wishes all a happy thanksgiving and presents a first glimpse of our reproduction Foot Guards bearskin. ...
11/27/2015

McPherron & Sons wishes all a happy thanksgiving and presents a first glimpse of our reproduction Foot Guards bearskin. Made exactly like the originals with a cane frame atop a blocked & hardened felt base. Real black bear fur carefully cut and stitched make the outer body.

This year's crop of hats by McPherron & Sons - all will be worn starting this weekend at the Great Dickens Christmas Fai...
11/20/2015

This year's crop of hats by McPherron & Sons - all will be worn starting this weekend at the Great Dickens Christmas Fair by men portraying officers and enlisted men of the Victorian British army and navy.

A Victorian Royal Navy captain's undress cap.
11/18/2015

A Victorian Royal Navy captain's undress cap.

A Victorian other ranks undress forage cap for the Coldstream Guards.
11/14/2015

A Victorian other ranks undress forage cap for the Coldstream Guards.

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Santa Monica, CA
90401–90411

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