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A question on western/cowboy manners

B

Bret4207

Well-known Member
I'm sure we have a lot of western type guys here, so let me explain and ask my question.

I've watched a lot of auctions, seminars, etc. where guys wearing cowboy hats are in the room. I've even seen this in churches. Is there a particular reason no one can be bothered to take his hat off indoors, in CHURCH for goodness sakes? Today I caught a bit of a church service on the tube and there were cowboy hat wearing guys craning their necks to look around the cowboy hat wearing guy in front of them and it continued on up to the front. I don't get it. I'm as eastern as they come and even I know enough to take my hat off indoors, especially if I might think I'm blocking the view of the folks behind me. Wearing a hat in church would be right up there with sucking down a beer at church.

So the question is, is there a reason they don't know enough to take their hat off or is it just darn poor manners showing through?
 
Don't much care what you wear on your head but if you don't remove it in church or at the dinner table I will remove it for you.
If you don't like it, you will be the next thing removed.
 
Real cowboys do take the hat off inside where it's proper to do so. In an auction house I would think it may be OK either way. In a business (grocery store, etc.) you never see them take a hat or cap off, except: Say you and your wife run into someone wearing a hat inside the store, or outside for that matter. It's proper to at least remove the hat to speak. In practice, it's just not done all the time.
 
I don't know what is good manners or bad in your country, but
around here every man removes his headwear at the table......No-
one ever seems to in America....is that the norm?....Sam
 
Chances are if they don't remove them in Church or at the table they aren't rural people. At the auction barn it's optional but if someone behind you asks politely for you to remove your hat so they can see better, then it's polite to oblige. City slickers and citiots seem to have a whole different kind of manners.
 

It is probably more of a young vs. old as opposed to east vs. west. I was never in the military but I believe that it is a very basic rule in the military to uncover indoors.
 
Hi
I was taught you don"t wear any hat in Church
unless it"s part of your religion, while in someones
home or eating at someones dinner table in there
home. or while the anthem is sung at an event you
attend.
That"s the way i was raised if there"s more things
to it, then I don"t know about them to be honest.
Regards Robert
 
I am a cowboy hat wearer myself. I would never wear it inside a church though. I actually own my own cows and my own horse. Let me tell ya, there is alot more to the act of being a cowboy than the hat. For some people, its all just about the hat. If you would ask, I'd bet most of the people you are seeing, are all hat and no cattle. These kinda of people think they are a big cowboy bad a$$ and refuse to take the hat off because they aren't a cowboy if they do cause they don't have any cattle or a horse either. Most of the cowboys that I know that are the real deal all have manners. There is a cowboy church that got started in my area. Never been to a service there, so don't know what they do. They might wear their hats in church, but I don't think their service is nothing like going to a real church.
 
I watched some Country Music award show a couple of years ago & noticed the same thing.When they finally did remove their hats for a moment the reason was obvious, they were all bald.
 
Brett,
I put on my baseball cap, any one of many in the morning and take it off when I go to bed, I hate showing off my bad hairdo HeHe. I look better with a hat on than off. wink. In fact I'm wearing a camo hat bearing the name of Rogers Repair Inc. from Iowa at the moment. This is my last post for tonight, so I'll be removing it shortly. Probably since tomarrow is a work day, I will put on my old tattered Moores Lumber cap. It dates back to the 80's
Loren
a155357.jpg
 
Redforlife said it all...."big hat, no cattle".

Same with the dirty baseball caps the guys wear thru dinner in a decent resturant...just proves their status.
 
I wear a cap everyday when I leave the house. Don't wear it in the house. I don't take it off every time I have to speak to a woman but I think that is not expected anymore. I do remove it when I sit down to eat. I remove it when a funeral passes, even if I am in a car going the other direction. I remove it during the anthem. I remove it any other time I feel it would be disrespectful to wear it.
 
The way I see it is, my hat looks better than my bare head so I leave it on as much as possible as courtesy to others-- although church is an exception.
 
Some of the older ladies at church still wear nice hats with their Sunday best. And I always wondered why woman never took their hats off inside of a building???
 
Like others have said "Take it off before I knock it off!!"

That is the common rule in my family. No hats in the house, and there are NO exceptions... I wear both Base-Ball caps (JD of course!) and I also wear one of two Western Hats (This is my nice black felt one)

Thats how most of the family's are around here, but the guys I work with on their farm are the exact opposite. They NEVER take theirs off...

Oh well, to each his own!!

By the way, when I put on this hat, Bryce transforms into "Insta Muffin" the Instant Form of a Stud Muffin... :)

Bryce
a155362.jpg
 
Always take mine off indoors, in church especially. One little personal gripe is that in, say a restaurant, you are expected to remove your hat ( & that is just good manners.) But, none of them have a hat or coat rack any more. ya got to hang your coat over the back of the chair & usually there's no place for your hat ! Some have something at the front door, but there is little chance your hat will be there when you're done. I guess I'll just keep going into my usual 'dives' where no one really cares.
 
I'm a hat and no cow person, however, there are 11 horses in the pasture that don't care for the reflection from the bald area when sun happens to shine. I remember a time when resturants had a place to hang your hat and coat at the booth but aint seen one in years. I take my hat off come food time less I'm outside. I know I've scared you all with a pic including 1 my hats so wont put you thru that again.
 
Bret4207, I have worn a cowboy hat/Baseball Cap since I was Knee High to Dad. When I went outdoors then went into any store It stayed ON, Now If an elevator was involved It came off there and back on after I stepped out. At School, Church, IN anybody's home including mine It came Off!. At the Sale barn cafe It was My Opition!
Any other cafe It came off, at a chair, at the table, Underneath the chair one was sitting in, or a ledge of some kind close by I Never leave my hat at the coat rack at the door, I will and do wear a hat to church I will leave my at on the hat rack there (my church) If visiting another church I place mine under the Pew in-front of me so I can Keep and eye on it.
To answer your Question.................
Yes! Bad Mammers, Ill Bred, Rude, Inconsiderate, Uncouth!!!
I have been involved in a few church productions and it is hard for me to wear any-kind of head covering in Church!
Later,
John A.
 
I live in a rural area in SE AZ. Closest town is 35 miles away. There is a popular cafe that is frequented by many local ranchers and farmers. In my many visits to that establishment MOST of the men in there do not remove their hats or caps. Young and old alike. Seems to me that the older men forgot their manners and the younger never learned any. So, is it age or area related? I think not. Also, it is not beyond me to ask a man to remove his hat in church. I have to do that quite often.
 
Can't say the exact reason why, but used to be years ago ALL women covered their heads in church. Even as a little boy I remember my sisters and other ladies wearing their bonnets on Easter Sunday.
 
I wear hats, both base ball caps and western. If I'm around family I don't take it off. If in someone's home it comes off. Church, a seldom visited place for me it comes off. Auction house it stays on but most often I wear the BB cap there. And yes I own a few critters.

Rick
 
Thanks to all. It sounds about like what I figured- as one poster put it- it's all about the hat. I'm bald as can be, own cows and horses and admit that there is rarely a time I'm not covered out doors. Now, I haven't been in an elevator in years, but I do take my hat off in diners and other eating establishments. I wear a cheap cowboy straw in the summer, not because I have illusions of being John Wayne but because I hate having half my face frozen off every fall by the dermatologist that's trying to keep my skin cancer at bay. I just didn't know if there was some western custom I'd missed along the way.

It's funny some folks would worry about covering up their bald heads in a day when shaved heads are considered "stylish". Get over it guys, God only made so many beautiful heads, the rest he covered with hair!

Come to think on it, I wore a Stetson professionally for over 20 years. We had the exact opposite problem that I relate- the rules were that a Trooper outside or engaged in an official act, ie- writing a ticket, making an arrest , doing an interview, should be wearing his hat. We usually had to lean on the baby Troopers to get them to put their hat on. It was easy for me having been a Marine, but it always puzzled me why the kiddies were so adverse to wearing the symbol that was so freakin' hard to earn. Never understood it.
 

I just remembered, reading these posts, that back some 15-20 years ago that young fellows had a great fear of being seen with "hat hair". Wearing a helmet, of course, would give you hat hair, so many guys would buy and use a special accessory bag that attached to the handle bars of their motorcycle or snowmobile so that they could quickly and easily have their hat ready, and then cover their hair before going into a restaurant for lunch. So yes of course they kept the cap on during lunch. Must be that those guys in church rode their motorcycles to the service and didn't want to terrorize the other worshipers with a crazed motorcycle outlaw look.
 
Hey, Loren,
Since most Moore's lumber stores are gone, if you really want another one, let me know cause I think there are a few left around here from the days when I worked for the one in Asheville.
 
Respect, manners, house rules, whatever the reason,
We grew up with parents/grandparents that taught us
what was right. And with a Marine Sgt for a
father, those headcovers came on in the house!
 
Those headcovers came ON in the house".
Funny, I am a Navy man, and I always thought Marines followed Navy tradition. Navy mandates headcovers are never worn indoors, and we never saluted without a headcover, thus we never saluted indoors.
 
i am out west, and i live around cowboys, the real deal,they make their living on cattle ranches, not some urban wanna be, and i have never seen a cowboy wear his hat in a church, or at the dinner table,most realcowboys are soft spoken and have good manners, i dont know where the film was shot, but i have a feeling the "cowboys" in it probably drive little forgine cars, not beat up pickup trucks
 
If you are tall, you learn quickly to take your hat off indoors.
They block upwards vision (ballcap)
and you will knock yourself silly on low doorways. :D
And this past winter, I did wear my winter hat inside my house.
Hey, it was cold in here :D
 
I would like a new one. I'm a hat guy. It would be neat to walk in the store, now Pro-Build with a fresh Moores hat.Many of the people from management down to yard guys have been there since the time it was Moors Lumber. Several have become good friends over the years.
Shoot me an e-mail with details.
Loren
 
Sometimes, manners are rules made for a good reason (ie obstruction of view of others), but often they are nothing more than tired old rules that don"t serve any modern purpose.

In church, I understand the purpose. In your house - your rules. However, when I go to a restaurant and pay for my meal, I figure it is MY choice unless the restaurant has a written rule (again, their house - their rules).

Hats being removed indoors is akin to the old Japanese rule about removing shoes when entering a household. (By the way, I DO wear shoes and I don"t wear a hat!)
 
I had to chuckle at this.

In the Marine Corps, the only time it is permissible to wear a headgear indoors is if you are on duty under arms. Otherwise, wearing a headgear, or "cover" in Corps lingo, is verboten indoors.

In Officer and Staff NCO clubs around the Corps, it is common to see a prominent sign stating "He Who Enters Covered Here, Buys For All A Round Of Cheer".

And it's gleefully enforced.
 
Well if they got hats on inside they definatly were not Marines ! Real cowboys probably don't wear them inside either.
 
Sounds like the ones you're talking about are all hat and no cowboy. Personal opinion? Real cowboys do have class and manners,unlike eastern REDNECKS.
 
(quoted from post at 06:07:56 04/28/14) Sometimes, manners are rules made for a good reason (ie obstruction of view of others), but often they are nothing more than tired old rules that don"t serve any modern purpose.

In church, I understand the purpose. In your house - your rules. However, when I go to a restaurant and pay for my meal, I figure it is MY choice unless the restaurant has a written rule (again, their house - their rules).

Hats being removed indoors is akin to the old Japanese rule about removing shoes when entering a household. (By the way, I DO wear shoes and I don"t wear a hat!)
Click to expand...

In my opinion removing ones hat in or before entering many places like a restaurant or someone's home or a funeral parlor, serves a very good purpose. It keeps one from looking like a poorly raised redneck. I'm not saying that it makes a person one, they just look that way.
 
Three pages of why people do *NOT* wear their hats in church...

Not ONE person explaining why the OP would have seen a church service where everyone was wearing cowboy hats.

We know you're all perfect upstanding respectful citizens, and butter wouldn't melt in your mouth.

There has to be a valid reason why so many would be at a church service wearing cowboy hats.

Frankly next time you see it make note of the show and channel.
 
(quoted from post at 20:12:50 04/27/14) Some of the older ladies at church still wear nice hats with their Sunday best. And I always wondered why woman never took their hats off inside of a building???
Click to expand...

The Bible says women are to have their heads covered in church; don't know chapter and verse so don't ask - you can Google as easy as I can :p
 
LOL. Just not sure what you are getting at. I have not been to the grand ole opry but I am sure it is a sea of cowboy hats and it is all exceptable. I do know the original building the old ryman auditorium was a church before it housed the radio show grand ole opry. My comments probly still apply as far as the hat goes. I know George Straight and Chris Ledoux among others are or was the real deal and not just wearing a hat for the show. LOL
 
As my Dad (and others) say, "take it off or I'll knock it (or you) off!" We were always taught to never wear a hat at the table. They were hung up before you ate, or you didn't eat. You didn't dare walk in to church with your hat even in your hand lest you got the crap knocked out of you. Usually didn't hurt to wear one in the store or a dealer. Offices, schools, auditoriums, etc., "take it off or else!" Worst whipping I ever got from my mother was when I sat down to eat with a hat on. Only did it once.

Mac
 
(quoted from post at 04:55:52 04/28/14) i am out west, and i live around cowboys, the real deal,they make their living on cattle ranches, not some urban wanna be, and i have never seen a cowboy wear his hat in a church, or at the dinner table,most realcowboys are soft spoken and have good manners, i dont know where the film was shot, but i have a feeling the "cowboys" in it probably drive little forgine cars, not beat up pickup trucks
Click to expand...

The church show was "Cowboy Church" on RFD. Some of the other places I saw this include various indoor auctions, cattle seminars, breeders seminars, concerts (indoor), things like that. Ive also seen it locally with out of staters from western states driving monster trucks and large horse or cattle trailers that probably cost more than my whole farm. I don't know if they were "real" cowboys and it doesn't matter since I was asking more about westerners in general than cowboys.

I suppose it's just part of the same degradation of our society that results in people not standing for the National Anthem, uncovering or saluting when the flag passes, not holding doors for ladies or other folks in general, loud mouthed, in your face behavior, people talking or laughing during an invocation, etc. I'm no better than anyone else, but it bothers me that so many people have no manners whatsoever. Some of these people are clearly much older than me, so I can't put it off to todays poor parenting alone.
 
I give music lessons to youngsters... The boys have to remove their hats upon entering the building. House rules, no exceptions. The funny thing is, when an adult (father, big brother etc.) walks in wearing a hat (they can do as they like, they earn money, so I tell the kids) often the youngster will politely tell the adult "no hats allowed inside".... Hopefully that sticks with them, even if the music doesn't. You won't go far wrong being polite, I tell them.
 
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