Hats are off at the La Grange Area Historical Society — the village’s local history museum, which recently opened a display featuring more than 150 women’s hats chronicling the last century in women’s fashion history.
The exhibit, located in the museum at 444 S. La Grange Road, features women’s hats ranging from the late 1800’s to the 1970’s, and everything in between.
Marilyn Faber and Mary Ann Seward of the La Grange Historical Society set up the four-room display about a month ago. The historical society plans to have the hat parade open to the public through the end of October, Faber said.
The various groupings by decade show off dozens of types – sun bonnets, bird hats, doll hats, top knot, slouch hat, sloped hats and snood hats, among others.
What makes the display interesting, Faber said, is that the hats are all authentic and from the area.
“All the hats are donations from La Grange people,” Faber said. “We had a local resident (who collects hats) help us identify the hats by decade.”
In addition to the multiple displays, exhibit organizers set up a mock hat shop in one of the rooms, similar to an actual historic hat shop that was at 4 S. Fifth Avenue in La Grange. The display features vintage photos of the historic hat shop and its original owner.
The display features photos from La Grange's original hat shop, located at at 4 S. Fifth Ave. (Bridget Doyle/TribLocal)
“Miss Julia Arnold had a hat shop here in La Grange in the late 1800’s,” Faber said. “We pretend she’s in there using material and making hats.”
Seward said the historical society has already hosted girl scouts, cub scouts and guests attending private luncheons to see the hat exhibit, and they’re open to scheduling private tours.
“It’s easy to see how hats have changed though the years,” Faber said.
The La Grange Historical Society is open 9:30 a.m. to noon on Wednesdays and 1 to 4 p.m. the last Sunday of the month.
This Sunday is the last Sunday in May, and Seward said she’ll have the museum open even thought it is a holiday weekend.
For more information, call the historical society 708- 482-4248 or go to lagrangehistory.org.
bdoyle@tribune.com
