2-832-529 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

A wooden hat stand base (a) and form (b) painted white. The base is circular with one groove carved into the top of the base. A turned wooden dowel is screwed into the center of the base. The form is circular and tapers in toward the bottom where it attaches to the stand via a hole in the center of the underside. Mae Reeves (1912-2016) was a pioneering African-American milliner who was famous for her custom-made hats. Her business, Mae's Millinery Shop in downtown Philadelphia, was one of the first shops in the city to be owned by a woman of African American heritage.