What's the origin of the practice of wearing a basebal cap with the peak at the back, so all it does is shade the neck? Was there one individual whom the young copied or is it some gang practice or what?

Some gangs wear their cap backwards so the brim doesn't get in the way of firing their weapon.

Gentler explanation: If you put your cap on backwards, it didn't blow off when you hit high speeds going downhill on your new-fangled penny-farthing racing bicycle.

But NNN one wears a deerstalkerwhen riding an 'ordinary'.There's no no question of that being blown off, leastwise if the earpieces are tied together.

Catchers wear there hats backwards (they have to to put their masks on). Ken Griffy Jr. wears, or at least used to wear, his hat backwards during practice. I find it much more likely that it started with one of them (or even just by a random kid doing it) and caught on, becoming like the other minor acts of rebellion against 'proper dress' (like low hanging pants, untucked shirtails, etc.) that often go along with it, than that its beginings had anything to do with guns.

It absolutely started with catchers.

I don't think gangsters ever wore their fedoras backwards.

"I don't think gangsters ever wore their fedoras backwards." - Clare

The smart ones did, Clare. That way, when they were making their getaway, witnesses either thought that they were just arriving, or gave a description of men with really full beards.

quote:

Originally posted by DorianGreyed:
"I don't think gangsters ever wore their fedoras backwards." - Clare

The smart ones did, Clare. That way, when they were making their getaway, witnesses either thought that they were just arriving, or gave a description of men with really full beards.

So that's why Sherlock Holmes wore a deerstalker. It's the same either way round.So Professor Moriarty would not know , from a distance ( or close up if Holmes wore a muffler) which way the great detective was looking. Of course, Holmes would have to remember to take his pipe out of his mouth first,or any illusion would be gone (as would the muffler,when it caught fire from the pipe)

I'm sure people might wear their caps backwards for different reasons, but you better be careful wearing it backwards around certain gangs if you are not one of them. Some wear them to the right, and some to the left.

I always thought that a cap on backwards was a medical dressing to cover a lobotomy.