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These recollections of men mending boots and shoes around the home in the early 1900s are based on what my mother saw her own father doing. Whereas the activities of women and children must have been relatively similar in all working class households in the early 1900s, those of men were probably more wide-ranging and largely led by the inclinations of the men concerned, who were, after all, out in the day earning a living in paid work.
A man in the early 1900s mending a boot.
Adapted from a sketch provided by Rosemary Hampton from her book: A Jersey Family: from Vikings to Victorians, (2009), published by Channel Islands Family History Society and available from Amazon.
My father, like most working class fathers at the time, saved money by repairing our family’s shoes - or rather, boots, as that was what we all wore, apart from on Sundays and special occasions. It was cheaper for my him to do it rather than for us to use a local 'cobbler' [shoe mender].
My father did the repairs in his shed outside in the back garden.
He had his own hobbing foot. This was a length of wood about 6 inches in diameter and about three feet high with a hole in the top to hold a piece of metal in the shape of foot, which was known as a last. He had three sizes: mens, womens, and childrens. When he had a boot or shoe to repair, he chose the best size of last, put it onto the hobbing foot and then put the boot or shoe on top of that. Finally he placed the whole contraption between his legs, and sat down using his knees to support it.
Tools for mending boots and shoes in the early 1900s. On the left is the hobbing foot that with a last on it and on the right are lasts of various sizes.
He used leather to repair the soles and heals which he softened and made more pliable by soaking in a bowl of water. Then he took off the worn leather and hammered on the new. [He would have looked rather like the main in the drawing.]
His tools and implements were a bradawl for making holes, a hammer and nails and a very sharp knife for cutting the leather to shape. There was also some black stuff that he put round the outside of the sole, which he finished off with a small, hot tool. I think this was waterproofing but I'm not sure. He polished the boots and shoes with bees wax.
My father always seemed ready to repair my boots once he knew that they needed it, but he usually did not know. I well remember him asking to look at my feet – and lo and behold! There was a hole in the sole of my foot. There was a lot of "tut-tutting" and "Didn’t you know there was a nail sticking up?". Of course I did, but one did not readily complain in my childhood.
If you have an old photo which illustrates the way of life that my mother describes, I would very much appreciate a copy. Pat Cryer
In places my mother seems to use the term hobo foot, but this is not a term I know so I may not be transcribing her old writing correctly. Please let me know if you can clarify - Pat Cryer
