Bollman Hat Company

The Oldest Hat Manufacturer In America

BY BELL MEDIA GROUP & GRCA MARKETING TEAM

Editor’s note: The following story was written as a part of the GRCA member storytelling campaign. To read the entire story behind Bollman Hat Company, scan the included Flowcode.

Off Route 272, past the rolling farms and quaint antique shops of Adamstown, you’ll find Bollman Hat Company nestled in the center of the small, sleepy town. Inside the sprawling factory at 110 E. Main St., catwalks and original glass-paned windows create a romantic backdrop for the proud employee-owners working side-by-side to produce nearly 7,000 hats a week. This is the story of how Bollman Hat Company became, and remains, the oldest hat manufacturer in America and a “Forever Company.”

Bollman Hat Company’s story begins with a 29-year-old young man named George Bollman who, following an apprenticeship at a nearby hatmaker, decided to open his own hat factory.

On July 1, 1868, George rented an old whiskey distillery on Main Street in Adamstown to begin crafting his wool felt hats. The town’s proximity to water, which powered early factories, made the location ideal. Dozens of little hatmakers existed during that time throughout Berks and Lancaster counties; it has been said that hat making was Reading's oldest industry.

After a few years, Bollman Hat Company outperformed many of its competitors, enabling George Bollman to purchase 22 adjacent acres on Main Street — the very same place the factory sits to this day.

Times were good during the company’s early days. In the mid-1800s until about the 1950s, nearly everyone wore a hat; it was unusual for a lady or a gentleman to leave their house without one! The hat industry was booming for the first 90 years of the company’s history.

Bollman Hat Company tells a tale as old as time in America: a story of success that only arises from the ashes of continuous rebirth. It’s a story about a company that remains anchored in its belief in creating opportunities to earn an honest living, its dedication to doing things right for the long term, and its pride in knowing that something beautiful was created with the skill of human hands and the strength of their hearts.