Mad Hatter Card

THE MAD HATTER
The Hatter (commonly known as The Mad Hatter although he is never actually called that in the book) is possibly based on a man named Thophils Carter, who owned a furniture shop in Oxford. He always wore a top hat and was known for odd thoughts such as his invention of the 'alarm clock bed.' It is also possible that the term 'mad hatter' is drawn from a time when mercury was used in the process of curing felt. Over time mercury would cause neurological damage - hence madness. The original drawing is the work of Sir John Tenniel (1820 -1914) a well known cartoonist in the late nineteenth century.