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The top hat caused a riot the first time it was seen in London.
The man responsible was a haberdasher named John Hetherington, who designed it, made it and was the first person to wear it in the street. According to a contemporary newspaper account, passers-by panicked at the sight. Several women fainted, children screamed, dogs yelped and an errand boy's arm was broken when he was trampled by the mob. Hetherington was hauled into court for wearing 'a tall structure having a shining luster calculated to frighten timid people.'
John Berendt
International Formalwear Association
http://www.formalwear.org/public/resources/tophat.html
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