Zadoc Benedict
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Zadoc Benedict was an American hat manufacturer who established the first hat factory on Main Street in Danbury, Connecticut in 1780.[1][2] It had 3 employees, and made 18 hats weekly.[3][4]
Legend holds that Benedict plugged a hole in his shoe with rabbit fur, and found that over time the fur turned into felt. He then supposedly developed a process of making hats from the fur of locally available animals, like rabbit and beaver.[5][6]
