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NBC Bay Area – Ruth Dewson’s outfits are not complete without a hat.  Hats are her life.

“My father had hats. I always wore hats so when I came to San Francisco, I just started wearing hats,” Dewson said.

Her journey to San Francisco is a colorful one.  She was born in Paris, Texas.  Mrs. Dewson is the youngest of ten children.  At age 16 she ran away from home, moved to L.A. to live with her sister and work for a telephone company.  Dewson decided San Francisco would be a good home for her and selling hats would be a great business.

Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown became good friends with Mrs. Dewson over the years.

“Being the person that she is, a genius at marketing, she saw a niche that needed to be filled in San Francisco,” Brown said.

She opened a shop on Fillmore Street.

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