Fanny Graddon

Fanny Graddon was a prominent 20^th century milliner, born in Montreal in 1886. Her first boutique opened in 1925 at 6057 St. Hubert Street. She relocated to 1528 Mountain Street in 1936, sharing a building with florist Frank J. McKenna’s shop House of Flowers until 1955. Graddon retired from hatmaking that year, and died in Switzerland on August 20, 1961.

Her millinery business, however, continued to operate, possibly under the direction of her former assistant Agnes “Nancy” Fairhurst. Along with the House of Flowers, the hat boutique moved to 2180 Mountain Street in about 1961 and then closed for good in 1968. Fairhurst went on to work as the studio director for hatmaker Mr. Flemming in the late 1960s, and then as the manager of fashion designer Mémé Dysthe’s millinery salon in 1970.