A Hat Thrown Into the Crowd

This green and black baseball (or trucker) hat was worn by Farm Aid promotor and country music hall of fame artist Willie Nelson. The hat was worn on stage at the inaugural Farm Aid Concert on September 22, 1985 at Memorial Stadium.

The hat was thrown into the crowd where Kenneth Deaville Jr. caught it. Ken Deaville and Jo Ann Deaville worked security on and around the stage. The hat is signed "Willie". A patch on the front says "Iowa Farm Unity Coalition", and a white button pinned to the hat says "Farms Not Arms".

Nelson's original signiture was damaged by the rain during the concert and partially illegible. Several years later Deaville was in charge of security for a seperate concert and after the event he asked Nelson to sign the hat again, and to write on a piece of paper that it was the original item. Which means the hat has the unusual story of being autographed twice.