Curious about the history of the PTT uniform? Together with collector Jeffrey Koerhuis, I take a look at rare PTT caps from 1878 to 2002 and explain how they changed over the years.
The originally French headgear is called a kepi. The post horn emblem indicated the wearer was working for or from a post office. Wearing the kepi was obligatory.
1909–1929: the rare telegraph office kepi
In the photos above you see a very rare kepi; that of the concierge of a telegraph office. Besides post offices, there were two other offices: the telegraph office and the post and telegraph office. Because telegraph offices were rare and clothing wore out quickly, little remains from this time. The kepi in the photo is the only one in the Netherlands.
1929–1936: the first flat PTT cap
From 1925 on, the postal authorities started experimenting with flat caps. They introduced these around 1929.
Above you can see one of the first models that PTT(this name originated in 1928) put into use. The post horn emblem, combined with a lightning bolt on this cap, showed the carrier worked at a post and telegraph office. The employees of a telegraph office(including telegram delivery people) had an emblem with only a lightning bolt.
1932–1936: round PTT uniform caps
The flat caps were worn for a long time, and the round-shaped models were especially popular.
1936–1939: introduction of the PTT logo
From 1936, PTT replaced the post horn(see previous photo) on the cap with the PTT logo.
1939–1949: a new style of PTT cap
From the late 1930s, they introduced a new model of cap. Similar models were also used at the time by, amongst others, the Dutch Railways and many bus companies.
1951- 1970
Berets were worn throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. These were especially for female mail carriers, mail carriers in training, and telegram deliverers.
1949–1957: first class postman caps
After the Second World War, the caps changed model. The brim turned up and you could see from the golden edge which class the postman(the official name is‘deliverer’) delivered. With the cap above, it was first class.
1949–1957: summer PTT uniform cap
This green cap was part of the summer uniform. From 1921, PTT distinguished between a summer and a winter uniform. The winter uniform was made of a black woolen fabric(until 1970) and the summer uniform of green cotton(until 1964).
1957-1964
In the 1950s, caps became simpler, smoother, and cheaper.
1964–1982: gray PTT uniform caps
From 1964 they exchanged the green summer uniforms for gray models, a little later the winter uniforms got the same makeover. They also changed the caps to gray and for the first time, the caps were made of artificial fabrics such as viscose and polyester.
1964-1982
Because both the postmen and the telephony employees found the caps awkward and too static, the obligation to wear them was lifted in 1973. From that moment on, wearing it was optional.
Skipper caps were worn between 1982 and 1995. Because these are still missing from Jeffrey’s collection, I have no pictures of them.
1995–1999: the PTT baseball cap
From 1995, PTT switched to the baseball cap.
1999–2002: the final PTT uniform cap
In 2002, they changed the name from PTT to TPG and then to TNT before the current name PostNL. The names have changed over the years, but the caps have remained the same in style.
Would you like to know more about(the work of) Jeffrey? Check out his YouTube channel, website or follow him on LinkedIn.
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