Efl guess What! Student's Book 6 Grade 6

Language through 
the arts
Unit 8
99a

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•
a movie star
•
a pop star
•
someone in your family
•
yourself
Write about it.
1
What did people on the coast of Ecuador wear in the 16th century
?
2
Who started a hat company in 1835
?
3
Which countries did he sell his hats in? Why
?
4
Why did people travel to the west coast of the U.S.
?
5
Why did they buy hats
?
6
What happened in 1914
?
7
Who was Eloy Alfaro
?
8
Where do people make hats now
?
When Francisco Pizarro arrived in Ecuador in 
1526, people on the coast wore straw hats. 
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the hats became 
very popular. At that time, Montecristi and 
Jipijapa were the main towns where people 
made hats. 
In 1835, Manuel Alfaro came to Ecuador from 
Spain. He lived in Montecristi and started a hat
company. He sold his hats 
in the U.S. and Panama. 
Panama was a good place 
to sell hats because a lot 
of people traveled through 
there to the west coast 
of the U.S. to look for 
gold. They bought hats to 
protect themselves from 
the sun. 
In 1904, the U.S. began work on the Panama 
Canal. They opened the canal in 1914. Workers 
on the canal wore Panama hats and there is a 
photograph of U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt 
wearing a Panama hat when he visited the 
canal. Eloy Alfaro, Manuel’s son, used money 
from selling hats to help the Liberal Revolution. 
He became president of Ecuador from 1895–1901 
and again from 1906–1911. 
Today, the main towns where 
people make hats are Cuenca 
and Montecristi. Many 
famous people have bought 
Panama hats: movie stars, 
authors, and presidents. 
Napoleon had one and so 
did King George V of England 
and the Emperor of Japan!