Name-a-Day Calendar, August 16: Stetson Hatters

Page 283 of 365

Chosen in: 1900

Chosen by: Unclear, in honor of university benefactor John B. Stetson

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When I was younger, I thought it was just a coincidence. There’s a hat called a Stetson and a school named Stetson University calls themselves the Hatters. “That’s pretty neat”, I said, and then thought nothing of it for years.

So imagine my surprise when I learned that the Stetson for whom the university is named is the very same Stetson who produced all those hats.

In 1865, Philadelphia’s John B. Stetson invented the cowboy hat that’s now colloquially named for him. This made him a fortune, and within a couple decades, he’d earned enough money to donate most of it to charity and still get by just fine. So he did.

In 1882, Stetson’s friend Henry Addison DeLand led a push to incorporate a citrus-farming area of Central Florida that’s now officially named for him. He also founded a college the next year, DeLand Academy. Unfortunately, three years later, the school (now known as DeLand College) suffered financial hardship on account of a freeze destroying most of that year’s citrus crop. DeLand convinced Stetson to retire to his new city and donate more than enough money for his school to get back on its feet. In return, the school was renamed Stetson University in 1889.

Stetson (the school) first began intercollegiate athletics in 1900, when their inaugural men’s basketball team took the court. This and every other Stetson team has always been known as the Hatters in honor of John B. Stetson. It’s unclear who originally coined this nickname, but it’s here to stay.

Stetson’s mascot, a costumed cowboy, is also named for John B. His name…is John B.

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