KELSEY SIMMONS: Crowning glory: Some women are still making statements with their Sunday hats

The earliest known traditional hats in history were worn and seen on ancient Egyptian murals. As the centuries went by, the traditional use of hats worn by women in church is said to have originated from the Apostle Paul’s words in 1st Corinthians 11:15, which says that women should cover their heads during worship.

African-American women took this order, attached feathers and bows to it, and turned it into something beautiful. In the early 20th century, Sunday church services provided African-American women who worked as domestic servants or similar roles the only real chance to break away from their awful, unflattering workday uniforms. They favored bright colors and textured fabric — the bolder the better, really — and topped off the outfit with a flamboyant hat, or “crown.”

As African Americans gained more freedom, the “crown” turned into an important status symbol. During the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s, the growing middle class celebrated its economic successes by purchasing flashy hats and wearing them everywhere, from the office to the speakeasy. Black women appeared in church wearing colorful, wide-brimmed hats lined with silk, sparkling with rhinestones and trimmed with flower garlands, sassy feathers and delicate lace.

For generations, church sanctuaries across the nation on Sunday mornings, especially in black churches and especially on Easter, transformed into a collage of hats — straw ones, felt ones, velvet ones; every shape, size and color, with bows, jewels and feathers, reaching for the heavens.

Anyone walking into today’s services expecting to see a nonstop parade of women making fashion statements on their heads, however, might be sorely disappointed. Many daughters and granddaughters of the women who wore the bold and flashy hats back in the day have not carried on the tradition.

I had the pleasure of speaking with six wonderful ladies who might be considered as a “minority” when it comes to wearing their church hats. For the most part, they all started wearing them as young women and continue to do so.

Sallie L. Perry and Pearl L. Carter of Leary are sisters. When speaking with the two of them, I found out that they sometimes like to compete with each other when it comes to their church hats.

“It’s all in fun, and we get a big kick out of it. We have always been close, and one of the things we enjoy doing together is shopping for beautiful hats,” Perry says.

Another set of sisters, Jewel James and Essie McKinney of Albany, often dress alike when going to church services and other special events. Growing up over the years, they were always taught that a “real lady” always made sure that she was dressed from head to toe. They continue to take those words to heart, and the two of them try to never leave home without their hats.

Ora B. Crayton and Leola C. Jones are sisters-in-law who both reside in Orlando, Fla. Both are well known for the hats that they wear, and both make sure to always keep up with the latest fashions when it comes to their head pieces.

In my opinion, the growing popularity of wearing wigs, weaves, and other trendy hairstyles has a lot to do with the way that the tradition of wearing hats has slowed. Some might say that it’s a sign of the times and how things are always changing. Personally, I love to see women wearing their beautiful church hats, especially on Easter Sunday and Mother’s Day, and I hope that they never completely go out of style.

One thing for sure, if they do, I know six wonderful ladies who will keep the tradition going as long as they can.

Kelsey Simmons is a senior at Westover High School who recently completed an internship writing features and columns for The Albany Herald’s SouthView section.