The Tegelaar Kepi

On this page, you will find some kepis of the Dutch army made by the hat factory Tegelaar from Dordrecht. It is a rare maker. Tegelaar kepis are not often seen, but those who search well can still occasionally find one.

The company Tegelaar was located at Lombardstraat 15 Dordrecht and produced various types of headgear, mainly for the civilian market. However, military personnel could also have their kepis made here. During the mobilization in 1914-1918, Tegelaar manufactured military kepis, as well as during the 1930s and the mobilization of 1939. Since Dordrecht was the garrison city of the Corps of Army Maritime Engineers (Korps Pontonniers en Torpedisten), many military personnel from this corps had their kepis made at Tegelaar. Most Tegelaar kepis are kepis with a red piping, intended for military personnel in the Corps of Army Maritime Engineers. It is known from photographic material that the Tegelaar company made kepis for military personnel of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL), the infantry, the medical service, and the Corps of Army Maritime Engineers. However, it is likely that the well-known hat manufacturer from Dordrecht did not limit themselves to just these.