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In the 18th century mens hats were made of fur felt often made from beaver fur. The beaver fur was laid out on wooden frames and mixed with a hatters bow which was like a 6ft long violin bow.The strings were repeatedly plucked to vibrate the fur and cause it to felt into a mat. The fur mat was then boiled to shrink it so it was firm enough to make into hats. Sheeps wool could also be felted and it was cheaper but did not have the sheen of a beavers fur. The felt was then steamed and stretched over hat shaped moulds called blocks. The stretched felt was pinned into place on the blocks and left to dry. It was then brushed, stiffened and trimmed to make a finished hat.At this period of time it would have been tricornes or cocked hats and hats were made to fit the individual. Around this time most men wore hats whenever they went out so business would have been good especially with plenty of famers and merchants visiting the city. It was usual to train the eldest sons to become hatters so that they could all work together in the family business. To be called a hatter meant that you were making hats for men as a Milliner made hats for ladies. Blocking felt for mens hats required  some strength so hatters were always strong men. Around 1860 many hatters started to diversify as Hat sellers were now buying in large amounts of ready made hats. This coincides with the development of the railways and increasing mechanisation. This means that  traditional craftsmen could no longer compete with cheap mass produced products and why John James JOUSIFFE's children changed their careers?

Info on Hatters c/o SDFH Magazine - as supplied by Andea DART