Figure 1.--

We have only limited information on English footwear at thus time. Some footwear is the same styles as worn by boys in many other countries. We note boys at the turn-of-the-20th century wore heavy boot-like shoes. Poor boys might wear wooden shoes or clogs, but they seem less common than is the case of many boys on the Continent. The oxford shoe is a standard boys' style, but notably named for Oxford, England. One of the most destinctive English footwrear style is the school sandal. Another destinctive English style is Wellington boots. Canvas shoes were mostly worn for school gym classes and called plimsols. Sneakers became popular in the 1970s and were called trainers.

Barefeet

English children do not normally go barefoot, even during the summer. It was generally seen as a sign of poverty, especially in the 19th and early 20th Century. This was especially true for city children. We notice poor children going barefoot even in inclemate weather. There are relatively few photographic images from the 19th century, primarily because outdoor photography was not common. The photographic process was involved and until the late 19th century, cameras were bulky and difficult to transport. This was confounded by the fact that few people thought poor barefoot children were a notable subject. This changed with the development of more compact cameras at the turn of the 20th century. In addition, several photographers with progressive attitudes began to use photography to document living conditions of the poor. We note quite a few images of barefoot children in the early 20th century. It was presumably even more common in the 19th century, but outdoor snapshots of poor children were presumably less common. More affluent children might play in the back garden barefoot on a warm sunny day, but even this was not common. We note far fewer children going barefoot after World War I (1914-18), we assume because of increasing income levels. This is somewhat suprising because of the Depression and hard times. At the same time we note many children wearing light-weight shoes, especially sandals and during the summer commonly without socks. Even during the difficult World War II years (1939-45), English children did not go barefoot, although sandals were very common.

Boot-like Shoes

We note boys at the turn-of-the-20th century wore heavy boot-like shoes.

Clogs and Wooden Shoes

Poor boys might wear wooden shoes or clogs, but they seem less common than is the case of many boys on the Continent. A reader writes, "Wooden shoes called clogs were the general footwear of most people in Lancashire and certainly part of a boys dress wear early in the 20th century. They were hard wearing/ I think they had a wooden base and certainly leather sides. There was an iron rim on the soles. This was good for making sparks when the stone pavement was kicked. A reader writes, "I have got a book showing lots of photographs of early 20th Century Manchester. Many children are bear footed and others show children wearing clogs. Clogs were still worn by small children in the 1950's but pattent leather shoes had become fashionable by then. I never wore them but my gran argued their virtue for children and growing feet."

Oxford Shoe

The oxford shoe is a standard boys' style, but notably named for Oxford, England. I am not sure why this shoe is called Oxford-style.

Sandals

Today the term sandal has the context of a casual shoe to be worn for play or holidays in warm weather. This was not always the case. Initially it was used to describe an open work shoe made with strips of leather rather than a solid piece. Strap shoes may be most associated with English boys becise of A.A. Milne's Christopher Robin (and in recent years Disney). We do not have a detailed chronology of English sandals yet. We are beginning to understand the chronology betterin America becausewe have a good bit of evidence from clothing catalogs. We do not yet have this information from England. We do know that that after World War I in te 1920s that British boys who hd been wearing heavy boot-like shoes were commoly wearing sandals. English boys wearing sandals had various approaches. Many boys during the summer would wear them without socks. A few schools adopted the sockless aproach, but most required knee or ankle socks. Many schools required sandals for everyday school wear, both in summer and winter. Outside of school sandals were most commonly wore in the summer, especially in France. British boys wore the for play mostly during the summer and might refer to them as sand shoes. Many boys would wear them to school year round and, as a result, they became known as school sandals. There are two basic kinds of sandals: closed and open-toe sandals. The most common type was closed toe sandals. They came in both single and double bar styles. The single bar sandal with a center strap became popular for schoolwear. There were also open-toe sandals which became popular after World war II, although more for adults than children. We also note I think in the 1960s that sandals began go be made to look more like shoes with a very wide center strap. This style was especially popular with boys. Sandals were made in different colors. Our assessment is somewhat limited here because many available photographs are black and white. The most common color was various shades of brown, similar to shoes.

America

Closed-toe sandals in America were referred to as "T" strap shoes. They were not very popular with boys who in the 1920s began to wear sneakers for play. They were worn to some extent by little boys in the 1920s, mostly with dressy clothes. This was most common with affluent families. Most boys wanted to wear sneakers for play and thus sclosed-toe andals never caught on for leisure wear as they did in England. Some little boys did wear them, but agin mostly affluent families. I notice fashion magazines referred to Itlalian sandals when describing boys closed-toe sandals. I think this simply refers to quality footwear made by Italian companies which appealed to affluent mothers. The design looked much like the classic British school sandal. The style in America is mostly worn by girls.

Wellington Boots

No country is more associated with wellies than England. Virtually every British boy has worn Wellington boots or "wellies" at some time in his life. The heavy and frquent rainfall in Britain, make wellies very ptactical footwear. They were not specifically made for children, but were worn by adults as well for outdoor activities. Most of the wellies we have seen are black, but white and colored wellies were also worn. Up until the 1980's, British wellington boots were predominantly all black. However, since then, green wellington boots have become far more popular in Britain. Today, most British people, both adults and children, have green wellington boots which have beige soles. Green wellingtons were apparently made popular by members of the Royal Family in the early 1980's.

Sneakers

Canvas shoes were mostly worn for school gym classes and called plimsols. Sneakers became popular in the 1970s and were called trainers.

Created: 1:14 AM 1/7/2005
Last updated: 1:14 AM 1/7/2005