‘Hats Off’ Rain Day hats won in bets to be displayed
WAYNESBURG – In honor of the annual Rain Day celebration, the Greene County Historical Society created a Rain Day Hat Display at the Greene County Museum. The hats, which were previously housed in a Rain Day display in the Waynesburg Borough Building, were won over the years during the annual Rain Day Hat Bet. “We wanted to do a Rain Day room,” said Bernice Fox, administrator for the Greene County Museum. “So, the Borough gave us the hats and display cases.”
The Waynesburg Borough also gave the museum a watering can, which was previously on display with the hats.
The hat bet dates back to the late 1930s and is considered to be one of the longest running traditions held each year during Rain Day.
Each year during the bet, a celebrity is challenged by Waynesburg Borough to bet a hat that it will not rain on July 29. Including this year, it has rained 111 out of the past 135 years.
The winning hats differ in type, style and color ranging from a large cowboy hat from Willard Scott, who appeared on NBC’s “Today Show,” to a ball cap signed by Fran Drescher, who is best remembered for her role in the popular sitcom, “The Nanny.”
There is a hat from Donald Trump, a hat from the Dixie Chicks and a framed letter from Former President George W. Bush, who won the annual Rain Day Bet but wrote a thank-you letter for the hat that Waynesburg Borough sent to the White House.
This year, Mayor Blair Zimmerman will be adding a hat from the 2009 Miss America, Katie Stam, a 22-year-old from Seymour, Ind.
Fox and Debbie Wilson, secretary of the Greene County Historical Society Board, wondered if Stam would be sending her crown, which would add to an already diverse collection.
A few of the hats are on display in the museum, and Fox hopes the expanded Rain Day exhibit will be ready by the Harvest Festival, which is scheduled for Oct. 17 and 18.
Fox is working with the Greene County Messenger to find photos and information, and community members are encouraged to submit Rain Day memorabilia to add to the museum display.
Fox is looking for a “Brockabrella” to add to the Rain Day display. A brockabrella is a mini-umbrella that sits on your head, like a hat.
For more information, or to submit information, photos or Rain Day items, please contact Fox by calling 724-627-3204.