Baseball Cap Is 50 Years Old

According to an article on the BBC Web site the baseball cap is 50 years old this year.

It started as the official headwear of ball players and became a favourite with sports fans and aging tourists. Now at 50, the baseball cap is ubiquitous.

But is the cap becoming synonymous with "Britain's underclass"? Take a look around the streets around Britain and the answer would be a resounding yes.

It is a look epitomised by the young urbanites fond of Burberry accessories, flashy jewellery and boxfresh trainers who have become known as Chavs, Scallies, Townies or Neds. It's a style described as council estate chic, a UK-take on the trailer trash aesthetic.

The webmaster of Chavscum.co.uk, a site dedicated to charting the rise of this urban tribe, says it's inconceivable to imagine a Chav without a baseball cap.

"It is amazing to think how a piece of apparel that started out 50 years ago as a genuine piece of sportswear has now become so synonymous with Britain's underclass."