Bola Tie (Bolo Tie)

The bola tie (or bolo tie; “bola” meaning ball) was declared the official neckwear of Arizona in 1971. In 2007, the Texas legislature had a proposal to make it the official necktie of Texas as well.
 
The official Arizona line is that the bola ties was invented by Victor Cedarstaff in Wickenburg, Arizona in 1949. What’s not in dispute is that the ties became very popular in the 1950s, especially when certain restaurants wanted their customers to wear ties.
 
Some say that the bola tie was invented by Native Americans and is of uncertain date of origin. In 1953, “bolo ties” appears in a shoe advetisement (not the necktie use). In a 1954 ad, “bolo ties” appears in the necktie form, a product of Hickok (a company based in Rochester, NY and in Texas).
 
Patents records show a “Slide for a Necktie” patented by Victor Emsiihiel Cedaistaffi on May 24, 1954—AFTER Hickok was already selling bola ties?
   
   
Wikipedia: Bola Tie
A bola tie or bolo tie is a type of necktie consisting of a piece of cord fastened with an ornamental bar or clasp. The bola tie was created in 1949 by Vic Cedarstaff in Wickenburg, Arizona and later patented.
 
In the United Kingdom, bola ties are known as “Bootlace ties”. They were popular with 1950s Teddy Boys, who wore them with drape suits.

In the United States bola ties are widely associated with traditional cowboy dress, and are generally most common in the western areas of the country. The bola tie was made the official neckwear of Arizona in 1971. 
 
Bolo Tie Shop—Glossary
Bolo - is a western type tie with a decorative plaque strung on a lanyard and having decorative ends
     
Arizona State Library
State Neckwear
The Bola Tie
adopted 1973
Arizona’s official state neckwear was invented in Wickenburg, Arizona. It is worn around the neck in the same fashion as a necktie. It consists of a cord, usually made of braided leather, which is held together by a decorative clasp and often has some form of ornament on the ends of the cord.
 
Town of Wickenburg, AZ
In 1971 the Arizona Legislature decreed the bola tie the official state neckwear.  Vic Cedarstaff invented it in 1949 in Wickenburg.
   
The Arizona Republic
Who knew there were so many bola lovers?
by Star Lawrence
Jun. 4, 2005 12:00 AM
(...)
 
I have been rather starchily informed by several computer-lovin’ cowboys that the thing is even legislatively approved. Sure enough, in 1971, Barry Goldwater, with some assists from the Bola Tie Society of Arizona, convinced the Arizona Legislature to declare the bola tie Arizona’s “official neckwear.”

An online search reveals several variations in spelling and origins for this accessory. A bolo is a knife used in the Philippines and a bola is an animal leg tangler called a “boleadoros,” made of leather thongs, which is used in South America to bring down game.

I am going with the one with the strings, the bola, as the “official” spelling. (I can just see certain people who have written me this month starting to jump off their chairs. Easy, easy.)

One Web site I dredged up was written by a man who declared all ties stupid, but the stupidest of all, he said, is the bolo (“o-speller”).

He says a cowboy from Wickenburg (Vic Cedarstaff, if you must know) was riding the range in the 1940s, when his hat blew off. Before he could grab it, his horse either stomped it or defecated on it (the truth has been lost to history, blessedly) and all he had left was the band and a concho. He placed this around his neck for safekeeping, this gentleman says. One of his men, the story goes, then said, “Nice necktie,” and a fashion statement was born.

Another version has Vic’s wife seeing this breathtaking piece of bling and being swept away.

Later, the story goes, “the hatband that crawled out from under some horse poop” was patented, then made official.

Don Langlois, a librarian at the Arizona State Library in Phoenix, notes only that the bola originated in Wickenburg. He makes no comment on the rest of the story. He is, however, an adamant “a-speller.”

Another reader, Gigi Stacy, is an “o-speller.” She describes as “dim bulbs” those who prefer the “a.”

But when her letter to the editor was printed in these pages, she was whacked by the style book and ended up talking about “bola ties.”

Joe Sharpless of Sun Lakes is an “a-speller,” though he notes that he originally spelled it with an “o.”

He believes the cord and rock arrangement may have originated with the Native Americans as a way of protecting particularly tasty chunks of turquoise or gold.
 
Lufkin Daily News 
Legislators set to address issues of importance and of frivolity
By DENISE HOEPFNER
The Lufkin Daily News
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
 
When the 80th Legislature convenes on Jan. 9, 2007, lawmakers will have over 670 pieces of proposed legislation to consider, including those relating to hot-button issues like health care, education, criminal justice, the official state tie of Texas — and football.

District 39 State Rep. Armando “Mando” Martinez of Weslaco filed House Concurrent Resolution 12 to designate the bolo tie as the official State Tie of Texas because of its close association with images of cowboys and the western frontier.

According to the proposed legislation, the bolo tie, which was patented in 1959 by an Arizona silversmith named Victor Cedarstaff, resembles a type of tie worn by Native Americans in the early 1900s which consisted of a bandana or string fastened by a silver concho ornament and is also similar to the string ties popular during the era when Texas was being settled.

16 October 1953, Newark (OH) Advocate and American Tribune, pg. 2 ad:
BOLO TIES
(On “fine shoes for men”—ed.)

9 April 1954, Lincoln (NE) Star, pg. 16 ad:
The New HICKOK
BOLA TIES 
The solution to your sport shirt-necktie problem. Hickok designed and approved for dining by the finest hotels and restaurants. Bola Tie slips on and off easily, fits any neck size. In a wide range of sport motifs.
One lot 2.50
 
3 May 1954, Charleston (WV) Daily Mail, pg. 2:
Don’t be surprised if it looks a little like Wyoming rodeo time in town this summer when sports shirts blossom out.
 
Some restaurants insist that men wear ties. So, Hickok has come out with a thong (a strip of metal-tipped fiber or leather, to meet the dress decor requirements).
 
Already the “Bolo Ties” are the rave in southwest resorts and in cities such as Fort Worth and Dallas—and Chicago.
 
The “knot” is a handsome metal emblem.
 
15 March 1955, Ames (Iowa) Daily Tribune, pg. 22 photo caption:
Ryerson thinks bolo ties, like those on the sports shirts he is arranging, will increase in popularity for local men.
   
Google Patents
SLIDE FOR A NECKTIE Victor Emsiihiel Cedaistaffi
Patent number: 2896217
Filing date: May 24, 1954
Issue date: Jul 28, 1959
Inventor: Victor Emsiihiel Cedaistaffi
Patent Number Title Issue date
5008981 Enclosed yoke clasp for bola-style necktie Apr 23, 1991
5664297 Bolo tie-type device and securing means therefor Sep 9, 1997
Drawings

(Trademark)
Word Mark BOLA TIE SOCIETY OF ARIZONA
Goods and Services (CANCELLED) IC 042. US 100. G & S: ASSOCIATION SERVICES-NAMELY, PROMOTING INTEREST IN THE BOLA TIE. FIRST USE: 19661027. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19661027
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Design Search Code
Serial Number 73097082
Filing Date August 19, 1976
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Registration Number 1066507
Registration Date May 24, 1977
Owner (REGISTRANT) Bola Tie Society of Arizona UNKNOWN Phoenix ARIZONA
(LAST LISTED OWNER) BOLA TIE SOCIETY OF ARIZONA ARIAONA UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATION 2650 W. UNION HILLS DRIVE PHOENIX, ARIZ. 85027
Type of Mark SERVICE MARK
Register SUPPLEMENTAL
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
Cancellation Date October 18, 1983
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark HICKOK
Goods and Services (EXPIRED) IC 026. US 040. G & S: BUCKLES NOT OF PRECIOUS METAL FOR PERSONAL WEAR. FIRST USE: 19091100. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19091100
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Design Search Code
Serial Number 71534779
Filing Date September 17, 1947
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Registration Number 0515573
Registration Date September 27, 1949
Owner (REGISTRANT) HICKOK MANUFACTURING CO. INC. CORPORATION NEW YORK 850 ST. PAUL STREET ROCHESTER NEW YORK
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Prior Registrations 0177816
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL-2(F)
Renewal 1ST RENEWAL 19690927
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark HICKOK
Goods and Services (EXPIRED) IC 025. US 039. G & S: BELTS IN THE NATURE OF GARMENT SUPPORTERS, SUSPENDERS OR BRACES; MEN’S GARTERS AND CRAVATS. FIRST USE: 19191100. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19191100
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Design Search Code
Serial Number 71547546
Filing Date January 20, 1948
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Change In Registration CHANGE IN REGISTRATION HAS OCCURRED
Registration Number 0517146
Registration Date November 1, 1949
Owner (REGISTRANT) HICKOK MANUFACTURING CO. INC. CORPORATION NEW YORK 850 ST. PAUL STREET ROCHESTER NEW YORK
(LAST LISTED OWNER) TANDY BRANDS, INC. CORPORATION ASSIGNEE OF DELAWARE SUITE 660, WEST SIDE PLAZA 550 BAILEY AVENUE FORT WORTH TEXAS 76107
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Attorney of Record DAVID S. ABRAMS
Prior Registrations 0274484
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL-2(F)
Affidavit Text SECT 15.
Renewal 2ND RENEWAL 19900315
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark HICKOK
Goods and Services (EXPIRED) IC 025. US 039. G & S: BELTS IN THE NATURE OF GARMENT SUPPORTERS, SUSPENDERS OR BRACES; MEN’S GARTERS AND CRAVATS. FIRST USE: 19191100. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19191100
Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS
Design Search Code 24.01.01 - Shields or crests (plain) with neither a figurative element nor an inscription contained therein or superimposed thereon
26.15.21 - Polygons that are completely or partially shaded
Serial Number 72467048
Filing Date August 30, 1973
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Registration Number 1031094
Registration Date January 20, 1976
Owner (REGISTRANT) HICKOK MANUFACTURING CO., INC. DBA HICKOK CORPORATION NEW YORK 845 AVENUE G EAST ARLINGTON TEXAS 76011
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Prior Registrations 0274484;0557328;AND OTHERS
Description of Mark THE DESIGN ABOVE THE LETTER “O” IN “HICKOK” IS LINED TO INDICATE THE COLOR RED.
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 15. SECT 8 (6-YR).
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD