Panama hat mountain range. Hat weaving and wearing grew steadily in Ecuador through the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1835, Manuel Alfaro, a man who in many ways can be considered the grandfather of the Panama hat, arrived in Montecristi to make his name and fortune in Panama hats. He set up a Panama hat business with his main objective being exportation. Cargo ships from Guayaquil and Manta were filled with his merchandise and headed to the Gulf of Panama. His business prospered as more and more Gold Rush prospectors arrived and passed through Panama needing a hat for the sun. One
Adam Hats based in Dallas, Texas, where an old Adam Hats facility has been re-developed into residential property, still called the Adam Hats lofts. Dallas-based Miller Brothers Executive Benjamin Parrill became Adam Hats President in 1955. Parrill died in 2007. In the 1950s, Miller Brothers introduced miniature hat boxes with miniature hats. These novelty items were used as gift certificates, to be redeemed for a hat. In the movie "Cinderella Man" (2005), there is a quick camera shot depicting the front of Madison Square Garden in the 1930s, with an Adam Hats store next door to it. In the movie "Non-Stop New