Women often wore decorative hats when they went out to do their shopping or to go to church. Hats requiring pins started to replace bonnets (which tied under the chin) in the 1880s, and their popularity soared. American entrepreneurs jumped in and started mass-producing hatpins in the 1830s, which made them much more affordable. Women used long hatpins such as this to secure the hat to their hair and keep it from blowing off in the breeze. In a pinch, a hatpin also made a great weapon, since it was long and sharp!