By Jaime de la Parra

The ballcap is the number one, go-to piece of head gear for most and understandably so. Not just for general outdoor use, but also as an integrated part of a variety of uniforms. One cannot argue the benefits of only having a front bill without interference from our modern amenities. Using things like headphones, high-riding backpacks, or bumping the headrest while sitting in a car seat may cause a full brim hat to be cumbersome. But up until modern times, wearing a full brim hat was very much an important part of one’s everyday wear and survival when it came to spending most of one’s life in the great outdoors.

Going back a few years I did a video on the Wingman115 YouTube channel titled, BOONIE HAT HISTORY MODS AND STYLES. I’d like to revisit some of the information covered in that video, along with adding a few things missed and clearing up a thing or two I may have buggered up.

After having done some online research, let’s take a look at how the US military boonie hat may have originated and some of the history surrounding it…

The earliest I found for the US military issuing wide brim hats that resembled today’s boonies dates to the late 1930s. These early hats were made of denim and later herringbone twill. Apparently, these hats were nicknamed “Daisy Mae” due to resembling that of a comic-strip character of the time. In wetter climates, like the Pacific Northwest, this style of hat could have been made from other materials like canvas and then heavily treated with various types of oils in order for the hats to shed water. Water repellency is something that would also be incorporated into today’s modern military boonie hats.

During the Second World War, the British Commonwealth Forces issued a bush hat with their hot-climate uniform, which was pretty much a boonie hat by all intents and purposes. While fighting in the South Pacific, the Australian forces were also issued similar head gear that was referred to as a Giggle Hat. As with many things within US military history, it’s probably safe to assume that this piece of British gear had the most influence on the development and design of the US boonie hat. But that’s just my humble opinion.

Hitting the historical fast-forward button to the early 1960s and the Vietnam War, we start to see the usage of boonie hats within the US military. But in the early part of the war before, the massive issuance of the boonies, some US Special Forces units would often have bucket hats (aka: fisherman hats) custom made by local tailors. These early hats would be made in various types of fabrics, whether from US government issued (USGI) clothing or non-issued clothing fabrics. Going with non-issued clothing fabrics allowed the use of whatever colors or camouflage patterns that were available at the time, such as the World War II Frog Skin camo pattern (aka: Duck Hunter Camo), and the legendary Tiger Strip camo.

Side note #1: The Tiger Strip camouflage pattern originated in Vietnam, being heavily influenced from the French Lizard camo pattern used during the Indochina War in the mid-1940s. Although highly effective in jungle environments, the Tiger Strip camo was never an official USGI pattern. But due to its effectiveness, and being a non-issued pattern, it was highly prized and used by US special operations groups.

Side note #2: Some of these special operations groups had a lot of leeway regarding the weapons, equipment, and clothing that they could use. This was for a variety of reasons, but one of the most important was to avoid being recognized as US troops when conducting cross-border operations into Laos and Cambodia. The reason for this was that the Vietnamese Communists (Viet Cong or VC) were operating illegally by using the Ho Chi Minh Trial as their support network up and down the Vietnam border, but by staying outside of their own country to avoid detection.

Side note #3: By recruiting special operations personnel from the various US military branches and local indigenous fighters called, Montagnard (a French word meaning “mountain people”) the CIA conducted clandestine reconnaissance missions to expose those illegal cross-border activities by the enemy. The commandos involved with these CIA operations fell under the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group or MACV-SOG. At the inception of this organization, SOG originally stood for Special Operations Group. But that was quickly changed to Studies and Observations Group as an attempt to not seem so obvious as to what they were up to.

Going back to the hats, when US forces encountered Viet Cong fighters it was obvious that they also favored a boonie-like-hat that was not unlike the USGI Daisy Mae. Often seen worn along with their black “pajama” VC uniforms, these hats were often black, khaki, or olive drab in color.

So, it is safe to say that just about everyone favored a wide brimmed soft hat for these hot, tropical environments during this wartime period. Eventually, the US military came up with its own version for mass distribution by the middle of the Vietnam War. Since its inception, not much has changed with the USGI boonie hat design and specifications over the decades.

The exact origins of the word “boonie” is still somewhat up for debate. Some say that it is the shortened version of boondocks. For those unfamiliar with the word, here’s the definition: rough, remote, or isolated country. What’s interesting about this word is that sources say that boondocks is the American slang version for the Tagalog word for mountain, bundok. According to online research, this whole “bundok” to “boondocks” slang was picked up by US service members during the Philippine-American War in the early 1900s. As for the official US government nomenclature per the military specification (MIL-SPEC) tags found within these hats, it is as follows: HAT, SUN, HOT WEATHER, or something along those lines depending upon the military contract manufacturer and the hat it is on. Nonetheless, the term “boonie hat” is here to stay.

When one looks at the crown portion of the USGI boonie hat, you will notice the similarity like that of the current issued US Army Patrol Cap, a design that dates to WWII. They both have a taller back at approximately 3 inches in height, that angles down to a shorter front at approximately 2 inches in height. The boonie brim is approximately 2 & ½ inches in width all the way around. Although these dimensions have fluctuated throughout the decades depending on the military contract manufacturer.

Within the crown, all USGI boonies will have 4 wire mesh eyelets (2 on each side) for air circulation, along with an adjustable chin strap. Most will come with webbing, or a foliage band, around the crown. This band has multiple uses. From my understanding, its primary use was to attach mosquito netting (that used to be issued with the hat during the Vietnam War) and to drape it over the brim. But for the most part the band is used to attach natural vegetation for camouflage, or other materials for whatever the imagination can come up with. Although, some of the early USGI desert boonie hats do not have this band feature. I guess Uncle Sam figured no one would find, or want, any foliage out in the desert to attach to their boonie.

All US military issued boonies are offered in various sizes. On the MIL-SPEC tags found within these hats it is stated that an initial loose fit is required for continued comfort. US military hat size charts can easily be found online, as well as where to purchase one. I have purchased boonie hats through various online sources. In my experience, even though the online sellers stated the specific hat size, there have been some that the fit was a bit off. So, if you are looking for a specific fit, then I would highly recommend finding an actual store that sells them so you can try them on.

Most military surplus stores will sell USGI boonies. There you can try them on and confirm the actual fit you are looking for. These hats can either be new, used, or new but with manufacturing defects. The latter will typically afford you a new hat at a discounted price. At my local military surplus store, I have found boonies in all three conditions and at great prices. And not just in the current USGI camouflage, but also in olive drab, khaki, black, and some vintage military camo patterns to include Tiger Strip. Even though Tiger Strip camo was never officially issued, nonetheless it is still made to MIL-SPEC by some military contract manufacturers due to its popularity.

As with many of my pieces of gear, I typically modify things to my liking right after purchasing them. Such is the same for my boonie hats. For me, the chin strap is the first thing to go. But first, let’s look at all the roles and applications that the chin strap is capable of.

The adjustable chin strap that comes with all USGI boonies is a simple affair. It is a nylon type strap, that resembles the outer sheath of paracord, with a small leather tab containing two holes for the strap to pass and slide through. There are a few ways to utilize this chin strap depending on one’s preferences and/or situation.

The leather tab enables the strap to be tightened underneath the chin. This would be of value in a high wind situation that could cause the hat to fly off one’s head. Also, if the chin strap is worn loosely towards the front, the wearer could remove and drape the hat over one’s back, all the while retaining it on their body as it is hanging from the front of the neck. My preferred method of using the chin strap is to wear it cinched around the back of the head and tying a knot in front of the tab to secure it in place. I have found that this method secures the hat even in high wind without having the strap underneath the chin, which I find rather annoying. In the YouTube video mentioned earlier, I demonstrate how I cinched and tied the chin strap to fit the back of my head.

If one wanted to have the chin strap out of the way, one could simply place it inside the hat while wearing it or have it hanging towards the back of the neck. Another method of keeping the strap out of the way would be to simply invert it up and over the rear brim area. Some will take that method a step further and invert the strap towards the top of the hat so that they can roll up the sides of the brim and secure the strap at the top and turn the boonie into a cowboy hat. The problem I find with this cowboy roll is that one is now defeating the purpose of the brim that runs all the way around the head, shielding the ears and neck from the sun and elements. Although, one benefit with the cowboy roll is that one could wear over-the-head hearing protection (in lieu of ear plugs) while having the sides of the brim conveniently rolled out of the way. Regardless of whichever method you use, one still has the chin strap if it is ever needed for its intended purpose, or to simply hang up the hat or attach it to something. I tend to cut off the chin strap off most of my customized short-brim boonies.

Going back to the Vietnam War, some would cut down the brims of their hats to have a better field of vision while conducting jungle patrols. Which brings us to the other modification I’ve made to some of my boonies, and that is to have the brims trimmed down. To be exact, I have them tailored to 1 & 3/4th of an inch in width all around. The reason for this is that some of my boonies are designated as my archery hats. This shorter width allows me to draw my bowstring without any interference from the brim, so as to not affect the flight of the arrow. I know this because it has happened to me in the past. Thus, missing what should have been easy hits during a bowhunt. The other benefit to this shorter brim is that it allows for better visual clearance. But the drawback is that you sacrifice the benefits of a larger brim when it comes to shading and coverage from the elements.

In the boonie hat video referenced in the beginning, there were a few questions in the comments section regarding the olive drab boonie hat I was wearing. This particular hat was made by R&B Inc., and they are still a current maker of MIL-

SPEC hats. But most asked about how I retained the shape of it that resembled the hat worn by the fictitious character, Captain Price, in the video game, Call of Duty. Since I do not play video games, I had no idea what everyone was talking about. So, I had to look that character up on the internet… LOL

The only thing I have ever done to shape the brims was to soak them in water and let them hang-dry in the shape desired. But there is also the method of running a thin wire within the trim that surrounds the border of brim. This way one can shape the brim while having the wire retain whatever style is desired. Others choose to run a heavy nylon strand, like that of a weed-wacker string, instead of a metal wire. There are some good tutorial videos on YouTube on this type of mod. Also, one can find videos with more complex modifications regarding camouflage attachments to the hat, as well as a variety of other outdoor-survival related configurations and uses.

In conclusion, the boonie hat is my preferred piece of headgear when heading outside. I’ve worn one while growing up in the 80s, during my time in military service, and still do so to this day. Whether I’m hunting, hiking, camping, working, or just walking to my local café, you can bet that I’ll be wearing one.

About the author:

Jaime Leon de la Parra joined the US Army straight out of high school and served from 1991 to 1994. After an Honorable Discharge, he went to school and after a 4-year separation, he reenlisted into the US Navy from 1998 to 2000.

Following a Medical Discharge from the Navy, Jaime went on to work as a military contractor out of San Diego, CA, where he met Jon Heffron after watching one of his videos on the Wingman115 YouTube channel. Since then, Jaime has been a guest host for multiple videos on various topics on the Wingman115 channel.

Jaime resides in San Diego where he continues to work alongside the military community. With his spare time, he teaches traditional archery and instinctive shooting. For more information, you can visit Jaime’s website…

www.jldarchery.com