The History of the Pith Helmet

Today the Pith helmet conjures up images of Steve Irwin and the crocodile hunter. Those of us old enough to remember the Tennessee Tuxedo cartoon will remember the Pith helmet worn by Commander McBragg in his adventures and in the British gentleman's club in which he regaled his enthralled companion with tales of the glories of his past adventures. The pith helmet has declined in popularity today although it remains a popular piece of apparel in Vietnam.

Primitive versions of this piece of head gear appeared in the 1840s. Its purpose, as is the purpose with almost all other hats and head ware is to shade the pith helmet's wearer from the sun. It gained popularity with military personnel in the 1870s and today it is hard to imagine images of late 19^th and early 20^th century British soldiers without a Pith helmet adorning their head.

The English word for this type of hat derives its names from one of the materials it was originally made out of - pith or cork. Although many people associated the rounded hat with a brim with the British Empire, the pith helmet was worn by all European colonial powers, particularly by white military personal in charge of native troops.

The pith helmet quickly became adopted by all Westerners who lived in tropical areas. The wide brimmed design was thought to be necessary for people of a lighter complexion to avoid heat related conditions such as heat exhaustion or sunstroke. While the pith helmet worked well for that purpose tropics, any sort of wide brimmed skin covering helps people of all possible skin colors avoid developing skin cancer and other diseases related to overexposure to ultraviolet radiation that is not blocked by the ozone of our atmosphere.

Today most people will associated the Pith helmet either with outdoor adventurers such as the late Steve Irwin or of the military of the British colonial period. While it is still in use today in many areas of the world, the pith helmet has declined from its former popularity. The British Marines use a hat similar to the pith helmet, although since it is not made of the correct materials, it does not share the name of its more famous cousin.

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