Company Profile: The Roman Pro Cap Company

In the days before exclusive licensing, many different companies competed to make various parts of a ball players' uniform. Many different companies made on-field ballcaps before New Era was granted exclusive license for ballcaps in 1994. As time goes by, information on the now-defunct companies that used to make ballcaps gets lost. As a tribute to those companies, I will post profiles full of company information I have gathered from various sources once and a while. First I will begin with the Roman Pro Cap Company.

Roman Manufacturing Corp. was started in 1936 by Larry & Olga Mazzola creating monogramming for fine linens, handkerchiefs, towels, fur coat linings and more.During the early years the company name was changed to The Roman Art Embroidery Corp.



They developed many clients in the sporting goods manufacturing industry and became a major source of embroidered logos for the uniforms of the professional sports teams. The Boston, Mass. based Tim McAuliffe Inc., founded in 1896, used Roman’s embroidery for their caps and uniforms. By 1969, McAullife no longer made caps. That was handed over to the KM Pro Cap Company. All teams until expansion in the 1960s used KM Pro caps at one time or another. After expansion Roman did the embroidery for more than half of the new clubs. Roman didn’t just supply embroidery for McAuliffe/KM Pro; they also supplied the embroidery under private label for Wilson (Wilson caps were manufactured by New Era).



In the late 1970s the KM Pro Company closed its doors. Due to the major loss of business, it was decided that Roman should start manufacturing their own baseball caps. Roman Pro Cap Company was created. Several teams used Roman-made caps but they had few remaining MLB customers by the early 1980s. Around that time, Roman began remaking old style caps, commonly known as "throwbacks." They were advertised in sports magazines and were available via mail order. Roman became the first licensed cap company to make the old style caps, and were the first company to carry the "Cooperstown Collection" label. Most of Roman's caps featured 100% accurate embroidered logos as they had archived all of their embroidery patterns (New Era did NOT archive their embroidery).



The 1994 players strike shut down the retail business for all MLB-related goods for the year. Roman had made commitments to vendors for new merchandise and MLB would not vary from its contract which forced the company into bankruptcy. The company recovered shortly thereafter and was then sold to a venture group who proceeded to lose its business and ultimately shut it down. Roman also made caps under Mitchell & Ness for a time in the 90s. In early 2000s Roman was resurrected and the company decided to further develop their custom digitizing and embroidery division. The company then became known as Apparel 2000 LLC. They are no longer affiliated with professional sports, including Major League Baseball, and likely never will be again (I was told by a company representative "...unless they are granted exclusive license for 100 years."). Their embroidery patterns are still in their archives but are not available to the public.



Some of the teams that wore Roman caps on the field were the Boston Red Sox, Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, & Houston Astros. There are probably a few others. The Milwaukee Brewers were Roman's most loyal customer, which wore Roman caps into the mid 80s.

Roman caps were also used on-field for "turn back the clock games" since that is the only time when exclusive licensing does not apply. However, I have noticed people as well as memorabilia dealers trying to sell Roman throwback caps as authentic vintage game used caps. Consider yourself warned!


A selection of caps from my Roman cap collection.

Comments

  1. My first instinct is that it's some sort of non-licensed California Angels alternate logo.

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  2. Paul! What's Up!? Its Nems from Universal Article.
    Feeling the new blog and your point of view! Great beginning!
    Thanks for the insight into the Roman Pro caps. I have a RP catalog that dates back to 1991, which features 50+ teams and styles. As a kid I use to imagine buying every single cap in the catalog!
    I can scan it for you if you need a copy?
    Anyway, I listed The Ballcap Blog on the UA Links section and a big shout on our twitter feed!
    Keep up the Good Work!

    Peace,
    Nems
    Universal Article

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good morning nems my name is Jason Libby I have a vintage 8 panel Yankees cap and just wondering date and value it's in great shape any info or another way to contact you would be awesome

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  3. Thanks Nems!

    Please, please, please scan me the catalog!!!

    I have some Roman caps for sale. Let me know if you are interested!

    And thanks for the shoutout!!! Keep in touch.

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  4. Very interesting article.
    I was all set to buy a large lot of Roman Pro hats in around 96 I believe, and was told there was a fire in the warehouse that destroyed the stock.
    It's a shame, New Era Cooperstowns are weak, and there are several American Needle models that do NOT match the Okkonen/Hall of Fame Data base. With Cooperstown out of business for MLB, it's impossible to complete a collection.

    I've got all hats since 1962, except a few of the pillboxes from 1976.

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  5. That's too band about the fire.

    New Era could do so much of a better job at remaking the old styles, they just choose not to. Oh well, what can you do?

    Please share some of your collection! I'm sure a lot of people would love to see it!

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  6. I had some Roman Pro caps. They always seemed to be skimpy on sizes and had a low crown.

    Will anyone ever make a Seattle Pilots cap and get it all right -- color, scrambled eggs, letter? And will anyone ever make the Pilots spring training cap (plain S)?

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  7. The Roman version of the Seattle Pilots cap, embroidery-wise, was correct because Roman's predecessor KM made the Pilots caps.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was fortunate to grab one of the RP Pilots caps as soon as they made them in the early 90s. I have a few RP caps.

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  8. Great article.
    I found a Roman cap in a second hand store recently and was hoping you might be able to give me a little information about it. I know it is a Kansas City Monarchs cap but I can't seem to find a date on when this particular label might have been used. Any information is greatly appreciated.

    http://tinypic.com/r/29yl4yr/7

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  9. I really happy to be visiting your blog. Thanks for the share.... Keep posting such an interesting information.
    company profiles

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  10. Back in the early 70's I collected every major league cap - directly from the clubs. This was before caps could be purchased from the cap companies.It took a few years, but I wrote each club and either bought their cap or some teams actually sent me one for free when I explained my goal. Back then there were several companies who made MLB caps. The Orioles cap (1975 - 1977) was made by AJD Cap Company in Richmond, VA, and it was the toughest to get. Anyone know how I could get an Orioles cap made by AJD? Unfortuantely, the caps I collected I gave away when I moved years ago. What I wouldn't do to get those caps back!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Really impressive blogs!!! I must say that if any company information is present in the search engine like Google than profit is on daily basis. I have been trying to put my company information in the Google since a long time and should say it will bring more profit to me. .

    Company
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  12. I so miss the Roman NFL throwback fitteds... the softest cotton, a great bucket, the bill formed just right... I believe I bought those around 1988?

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  13. Just found a Roman cap today in an upscale thrift shop here in Austin. It is red wool with a white block letter C on it. Small size 6 7/8. Any info appreciated.

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  14. I have a 1920 roman Yankees throwback cap is it rare

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  15. My Brooklyn Dodgers cap is getting long in the tooth and I went on the web to look for another. I am sad to learn that Roman no longer is in that business as their cap design and quality seems to me better than the New Era caps. I am not a collector, but a wearer. Too bad.

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  16. Greetings! Very helpful advice within this article! It is the little changes which will make the most important changes. Thanks a lot for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  17. What a great article, i just loved it and i loved to read it. Excellent thought author,i have bookmarked it.
    Cap Embroidery

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    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. GLU Uniform and T-shirt company is a reputable supplier of clothing in Vietnam. We look forward to cooperating with your company. For more information please visit: http://maydongphucglu.com/

      Delete
  18. Hi,
    Great blog.
    I just recently got hold of 2 Cooperstown Collection Roman Pro Caps. Just wondering what year/s were they made... They both have the white Roman Pro logo w/ the centurion.
    Hope you can help.
    Thank you very much.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Does RP have a website or social media?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have no idea, trying to search on Google but still no result, so sad so true. I think this company have good Images of Baseball caps and other caps options too (here it is Mũ Nón Phước Thịnh Corp). They're from Vietnam, means that highest quality and best price to have. They also free to contact 24/7. Just fine.

      Delete
  20. GLU Uniform and T-shirt company is a reputable supplier of clothing in Vietnam. We look forward to cooperating with your company. For more information please visit: http://sieuthibaoho.net

    ReplyDelete
  21. I have a bunch of Roman baseball caps if anyone is interested just email me.....they are going on ebay soon.....Rod
    roddyvh@hotmail.com

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    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. I think baseball caps is very nice for marketing events, and I also think pillows are much better (you can see the product at this link Goikeco

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  22. GOIKECO is also a TOP supplier - making Uniform and HAT CAP. You know, you want to make 1 to 10 product, than I recommend to search on ebay, amazon, or other online ecommerce. But you need more product with your logo on it than surely you need a specific company. Other than that, we are making pillows as gifts for marketing event at this link http://goikeco.net - that look fit your order well.

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  23. Question: The 1961 Los Angeles Angels cap: I'm seeing photos of it with a halo on top, but the ones being sold now don't have it. Did it ever NOT have the halo? It's kind of a sloppy halo, but a halo nonetheless.

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  24. Thank you Paul I loved the article. I just started collecting baseball MLB Caps this year. I’ve always had some, but never collected them. So. Thank you

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    ReplyDelete
  26. Hi. My mom dug up a Milwaukee Braves Cooperstown RP white label cap that I recall buying for my dad in a mall in Milwaukee in or about 1994 shortly before I moved away. She sent it to me at my request because I wanted to wear it to a Mets game this weekend. I was about to wash off the dust from years of neglect until I noticed the brim contains Warren Spahn’s signature. It’s pretty faint. Were these caps manufactured with player’s signatures on them, or have I somehow forgotten that I had Mr Spahn sign this thing before I gave it to my dad? He has no recollection of ever meeting Mr Spahn and neither of us recall seeing the signature before. Lol. Thanks.

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  27. I have a question about the San Diego Padres cap with the 1985-90 logo in your Roman Pro collection. I don't see anywhere that the Padres ever wore Roman Pro on field. Was this a TBTC or Coop? I am looking at buying a Roman of this logo with a leather sweatband and black Roman tag, and want to know the origin of this cap. I also noticed that the SD logo is interlocked on all the on-fields for this logo, but the Roman logo has the D on top of the S. No interlocking. Wondering if you have any info on this one.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I have no idea, trying to search on Google but still no result, so sad so true. I think this company have good Images of Baseball caps and other caps options too (here it is May đồng phục công ty Saigon Uniform). They're from Vietnam, means that highest quality and best price to have. They also free to contact 24/7. Just fine.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Great article.
    I found a Roman cap in a second hand store recently and was hoping you might be able to give me a little information about it.
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