A Cobbler’s Guide to Shoemaking

Shoemakers exist in all civilizations and were among the first European settlers in North America. Cobblers were part of the group that settled Jamestown in 1607. Reportedly, John Smith, the founder of the Jamestown colony, was a shoemaker. However, as in the European cities and towns, the settlers left behind, shoemakers and cobblers were not necessarily synonymous. Shoemakers were divided between two professions. Cobblers repaired existing shoes; cordwainers made shoes from scratch. The first European cordwainer came to America in 1629, two decades after the first cobbler. The importance of shoemakers in early America is shown by the fact that one of the first professional organizations in the colonies was the Shoemakers of Boston, chartered by the colony of Massachusetts in 1648. Cobblers have a patron saint, St. Crispin, and later, the Daughters of St. Crispin would be the first female labor union in the U.S.

The expense and difficulty in importing goods from Europe meant that cobblers played a vital part in the early American economy. Shoemakers’ value went beyond the economic, however. The cobblers were also an informal news network. Cobblers traveled from town to town, and as they repaired shoes, they shared news among isolated settlements. The advent of machinery and other advances in shoe-making in the 19th century would change this, however.

Traditional Methods

Although cobblers and cordwainers have both been prized throughout history for their skills, shoes have changed dramatically over the course of time. The first cordwainers weren’t making pretty, fashionable prom shoes: The sandal was the first type of foot covering. Early sandals featured a sole to protect the foot and some method of tying the sole to the foot. In ancient European cultures, this usually consisted of a cord made of leather or woven material. People in warmer areas used grasses or leaves to make shoes instead of leather. Wooden shoes like clogs were quite popular during the European medieval period. The soles of the shoes were fashioned from a single piece of wood. A clogger’s knife chiseled the wood to form the outside of the sole and heel, while a hollower was used to carve the wood to create an insole that followed the shape of the foot. If the shoe was to have a leather upper, a tool called a groover was used to make the groove the leather would fit into.

Europeans in the 1600s mainly wore one of two types of shoes. Shoes with flexible soles, such as slippers, were called turn shoes and were made by sewing a leather sole to a leather upper while the shoe was inside out. The leather was so soft that the shoe could then be turned right side up after being crafted. This is how some of the earliest shoes for women were made. Boots and sturdier shoes were made by sewing the upper and insole together before attaching them to an outsole with a heel.

Different methods of shoemaking emerged with the passage of time, producing shoes that were blake-stitched, Bolognese-stitched, English-welted (called Goodyear-welted when made on a machine), German-sewn, Goyser-welted, moccasin, Norwegian, stitchdown, or turnout styles. All of these methods required the shoemaker to measure the customer’s feet and cut out leather according to the measurements. After the leather was sewn, the shoes would be attached to insoles made of firmer leather. During this process, a wooden form called a last would be used to help create the proper shape. Originally, lasts were straight, which is why left and right shoes didn’t exist for early shoemakers. The soles would be hammered into place, often with wooden pegs, before the shoes were finished by smoothing and either blacking or burnishing the wood sole, removing the last, and make sure no pegs had pierced the leather insole.

Industrial Era

Beginning in the 19th century, cobblers began settling in cities and larger towns and opening fixed-location shops. Now, instead of the shoemakers going to the customers, the customers came to the shoemaker. Soon, cobblers began employing apprentices and journeymen, and from these origins came an industry that would create the first factory-made shoes. Marc Brunei helped make this change possible by developing a machine that automatically secured uppers to outer soles using metal pins in 1812. The invention of the sewing machine in 1846 made sewing the leather uppers mechanized, which also made it faster and less labor-intensive. Thomas Crick, a British shoemaker, designed a riveter along with rolling and cutting machines in the 1850s, which further decreased the amount of labor needed. Combined with American Lyman Blake’s invention in 1864 of a sewing machine designed to sew shoes (it could handle thick leather better than the machines designed to sew cloth for tops and bottoms), this technology allowed for shoemaking to shift out of the homes of cobblers and into full factory settings.

In Popular Culture

Shoemakers and cobblers are a staple of Western culture. “The shoemaker’s children always go barefoot” is a well-known proverb. The story of the elves who helped a shoemaker appears in Grimm’s Fairy Tales and was later adapted by the Muppets. And while the process of making shoes has largely been taken over by factories, individuals still make a name for themselves in the field of shoemaking, including Jimmy Choo and Bruno Magli, both trained cordwainers.

• What Is a Cordwainer? Learn what cordwainers are and details about their history at this site dedicated to preserving the history and traditions of the trade.
• Shoemaking: The 1902 edition of Encyclopedia Britannica offers an Edwardian-era definition of shoemaking.
• Loosing a Shoe Latchet: Sandals and Footwear in the First Century: A 1964 archaeological dig revealed multiple pairs of shoes preserved in a desert climate. Ranging from the shoes of a Roman soldier to delicately made women’s sandals, the discoveries offered a fresh perspective of shoemaking across cultures in the first century.
• The Colonial Shoemaker: Shoemakers have long been part of the American experience. Colonial Williamsburg has worked to preserve the trade and shares information about its community shoemaker here.
• An American Identity: What terms for shoemakers were used in early America? This scholarly examination of the different terms and why they were used sheds light on the lives and status of early American shoemakers.
• Shoemakers and Shoemaking: Shoemaking is an important component of Philadelphia’s history. This encyclopedia entry covers the history of Philadelphian shoemaking and its impact on the city.
• Marching to War: The Production of Leather and Shoes in Revolutionary Pennsylvania: How did shoemaking impact the American Revolution? This in-depth study paints a vivid picture of the importance of a well-shod military.
• Timeline of Shoes: The Victoria & Albert Museum provides a visual timeline of shoes full of detailed information about shoes throughout history.
• What’s So Great About British Shoes? Traditional British shoemaking practices are still used today, and this article discusses the various traditions and why they are still in use.
• Native American Moccasins: The cobbler who settled at Jamestown wasn’t the first American shoemaker. Native Americans also have a long tradition of leather shoemaking, and this history of the moccasin delves into their shoemaking practices and history.
• Origin of Moccasins: Archaeology can offer a wealth of information about everyday objects, and this archaeological view of Native American shoemaking provides fresh insight into how moccasins developed.
• How Lynn Became the Shoemaking Capital of the World: Lynn, Massachusetts, grew to be one of the largest producers of factory-made shoes during the Industrial Revolution. This article delves into how Lynn developed its shoe industry.
• Lasting Impressions: Harvard University has a long history of preserving shoes in its museums and studying shoes in its labs. This article examines the sometimes tumultuous relationship between the Ivy League university and the study of shoemaking.