Hat box collapsible version for evenings, known as a gibus. They might also include storage space for items such as a hat brush. Designs became quite large during the Victorian era. A letter to "The Times" in 1844 warned travellers that Blackwall Railway's porters had charged a 1d to carry a hat box onto the train and a further 6d for transporting it to the London terminus, with the traveller himself paying only 4d for the journey. He recommended that travellers with luggage should go by steamboat. While traditionally hat boxes are circular or square in shape, some versions may follow the
Top hat satirists and social critics as a symbol of capitalism or the world of business (one current example is the Monopoly Man). The use of the top hat persisted in politics and international diplomacy for many years, including at U.S. presidential inaugurations, the last being worn at the inauguration of John Fitzgerald Kennedy in 1961. The top hat also forms part of the traditional dress of Uncle Sam, a symbol of the United States, generally striped in red, white and blue. The top hat is also associated with stage magic, both in traditional costume and especially the use of hat tricks.