Stetson with kilt

[Benning Boy]

You can see some US Army Stetson hats here:

http://www.militaryhats.com/hats.php...0Hats&catID=90

There are small variations in the shapes, with each belonging to a different unit or duty station. I believe this first came about when different Army posts began began establishing mounted color guards harking back to the early days of each post. Fort Riley, Kansas, home of the US Cavalry, where the old horse cavalry school was located, and where substantial horse cav units where stationed, and where the last serving cavalry horse is buried, may have been the first post to mount a color guard. I've seen soldiers of the guard wearing their black Stetsons at the stables, but when actually performing their duties as a mounted unit I've seen them only in kepies, but that doesn't mean they don't wear big black hats when performing.


It is said the black Stetson of today is reminiscent of the hat worn by the cavalry on the frontier, during the time of the Indian Wars, in the late 1800s. However the campaign hat of that era was worn by all arms and services, and was not exclusive to the cavalry. (And quite often in those days kepis continued to be worn as well as privetely purchased hats of other styles, includiing straw hats in the field.) If you look at the hats at the above link you will see one designated as the Fort Benning style. That hat is probably a more accurate representation of the 1875 model hat (believe that's the year of adoption) than any of the others. I could walk onto any post wearing a big black hat with crossed rifles pinned to the front and not be stealing anyones' thunder, as that would be a representation of the hat worn by infantry in olden time, too. In the same vein, a soldier could wear the Fort Riley style hat with the red hat cord of the artillery with crossed cannons pinned on and not be fouling the cav, as the pack artillery school was also located at Fort Riley.

At the link one or two of the hats have officer rank insignia mounted above the crossed sabers. That's a modern thing. In yesteryear only the sabers would have been attached, if any thing at all was attached.

The big black hats the cav wear nowadays more accurately reflect the styles worn in the movies, and being that they are in a way a bit of theatrical customary that seems appropriate. I vaguely recall in at least one or two old movies cavalry troopers are shown wearing yellow neckerchiefs as a Boy Scout might do. I can't wait for modern pony soldiers to adopt this bit of garb.

ETA: check this out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QT6tVqWbl0 Think about it, cavalry dismounting to fight like Infantry. The US cavalry fought more like European dragoons.