Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a tremendous example of an M1883 Campaign Hat, marked to the front with a stenciled 71, denoting the 71st Regiment, New York Volunteers, which saw heavy combat in the Battle of San Juan Hill. On July 1st, 1898, during the Battle, Lieutenant Trull was wounded by a Mauser bullet in the right arm, with another round shooting through the front of his campaign hat, narrowly missing his head by a few centimeters and exiting through the left side of the hat. We were actually able to find a period photograph of Trull at the Creedmoor Rifle Range, Queens Village, Queens, N.Y., in 1899, shortly before traveling overseas, and he is wearing an M1883 Campaign Hat with 71 visible on his campaign hat. 

The campaign hat still retains its hat band and its interior leather sweatband, bearing the embossed logo of Ridabock & Co., one of the most well-known makers of New York National Guard uniforms & equipment. 

The hat comes with the original size tag which has been kept in a small case, reading 6⅞. The Model 1883/89 hat has air vents punched in the crown that somewhat resemble a snowflake. This example bears correct "snowflake" punched  pattern vents on both sides. The brim has three lines of stitching. The hat ribbon bows have loose ends. These felt hats became symbolic of the Army on the western frontier and today is one of the most highly prized pieces of military headgear.

The large gash in the hat was repaired by a collector at one point, who glued some fabric to the interior to keep the shape.

William E. Trull Jr. enrolled in the Volunteers on May 2nd, 1898 in New York City, to serve two years. He was mustered in as a 2nd Lieutenant in Company G, 71st Regiment, NY Volunteers on May 10th, 1898, going overseas on June 14th, and disembarking at Siboney, Cuba on June 24th. On June 27, the brigade moved towards Santiago, making slow progress over poor roads in the heat. A letter from a private in the 71st noted "Yesterday the line of march up the hill was strewn with blankets and extra clothing, even some of the 'regs' (U.S. Regulars) discarded clothes and walked in underwear."  On July 1st, 1898, Trull was wounded during the Battle of San Juan Hill, almost certainly by a Spanish sniper. He was the first of his regiment to return home on July 28th, 1898, and he mustered out with them on November 15th, 1898.

This is a tremendous attributed M1883 Campaign Hat to a wounded veteran of San Juan Hill. Comes ready for further research and display!

The Battle of San Juan Hill, also known as the Battle for the San Juan Heights, was a major battle of the Spanish–American War fought between an American force under the command of William Rufus Shafter and Joseph Wheeler against a Spanish force led by Arsenio Linares y Pombo. The combined assaults on Kettle Hill and San Juan Hill that together form San Juan Heights proved to be one of the most significant battles of the war and, along with the Siege of Santiago, a decisive battle in deciding the fate of the United States Army campaign in Cuba. The American forces, outnumbering the Spanish defenders 16-to-one, charged upon the heights and dispersed the Spanish after suffering heavy casualties.

Tensions between Spain and the United States worsened over Spanish behavior during their efforts to quell the Cuban War of Independence, with many Americans being agitated by exaggerated reports of Spanish atrocities against the Cuban population. In January 1898, fearing the fate of American interests in Cuba due to the war, the cruiser USS Maine was dispatched to protect them. Less than a month later, the cruiser exploded while lying at anchor in Havana harbor, killing 267 sailors onboard and inflaming American opinion, with Spain being portrayed as the culprit in the American media without conclusive evidence. Two months later, war was declared.

The Americans, after already landing troops in the Battle of Guantánamo Bay, moved inland to seek a decisive encounter with the Spanish forces. Both sides drew blood at the Battle of Las Guasimas, with the Spanish moving to defend the strategically valuable San Juan Heights from the Americans. A week later, a significantly larger American force, including the famed "Rough Riders", moved to clear the heights of the Spanish. After enduring artillery fire which inflicted heavy casualties, the Americans charged up the hill and dispersed the Spanish, suffering even more heavily in the process. The fight for the heights proved to be the bloodiest and most famous battle of the war.

The battle also proved to be the location of the "greatest victory" for the Rough Riders, as stated by the press and its new commander, Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt returned to New York and was promptly elected governor. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 2001 for his actions in Cuba and became the only U.S. president to receive the award.