Mac Lasher (interview); Creator: Lasher, Mac; Interviewer(s): Research Seminar class of 1979; Interview location: Parks Center at WestConn; Running time: 50 min., Apr 3, 1979

Coverage: 1931-1979
Topics discussed : (side A): Danbury life; it was a one industry town; 90% of the population associated w/ hatting; Hat workers; hard working lead to higher salaries; hat makers among highest paid textile workers; Fur industry; associated w/ the hatting industry; prepared fur for hat making; different industry; rabbit and beaver commonly used fur; Chemicals of hatting; treated w/ nitric acid solution w/ hydrogen peroxide; prior to that, mercuric nitrate solution used; this produced the "Hatter's Shakes"; his background was preparing the solution, but never experienced side; effects of it; known as carrot because of the orange color it made the rabbit fur; Process of making of hats; cleaned fur for making hats; fur is weighed after cleaned; then put through various machines in order get a hat; over 40 different processes in the back shop work of making hats; finished in the front shop, which had about 15 operations; 60 dozen could be done in a day; Women in hat factories; in early days, they did hand sizing and wetting down process; Making hats was extremely laborious; hands were always in hot water and sore; Hat trends; old days, everybody had to wear hats; younger people today who have long hair have made cowboy hats popular again; Hatting job; worked for a company for 20 years; it was an open shop; Union/labor disagreement; were in a long battle w/ union disputes; management and labor clashed; never got personally involved in dispute; was a special case because of his job role as a chemist; Living in Danbury; he came to Danbury in 1931; Decline of hatting; began after WW II; some of the factor may have been because GIs were forced to wear hats in service and wanted to not wear them anymore; also hair styles changed, which effected wearing hats; by 1960s, hatting industry was practically dead; Copper; penny hat; a woman asked for a hat that color and paid whatever it cost (side B): Relationship w/ others in industry; always got along w/ management as he knew his job couldn't be loss; little to do w/ labor, but was fair; he introduced a bonus system, which benefited both sides; little friction w/ either side; most his conflict came w/ salesman who sold them the stuff to make hats; Various places he worked; Power and politics of hat companies; hat industry ran the city (they were known as "Yankees"); ethnic background played key role in opportunities workers had; Immigrants; the influx of immigrants of various origins all came w/ different attributes; some companies only hired by ethnic background; many came to CT from Pennsylvania to leave mining work; even his boss at McLachlan disliked Scots; Danbury Normal School; his wife went there; Workmanship of today; quality is somewhat loss; the attitude of "it's good enough" is very evident; Political involvement; never got involved; was asked by those who hired him not to; he respected their wishes; Hatters in control; the hat industry ran the city of Danbury; they made the ultimate decision making; if they wanted something, they got it; kept other industry and businesses out of Danbury until after WW II; never gave back to the community; His youth; lived on a farm in Newtown, CT (family owned dairy farm); the work was done primarily by animals and by hand; happiest time of his life; Chester Northrop; a known bachelor he knew when he was a kid