Figure 1.-- Here we see a strap shoe for girls and a more boyish Oxford that both boys and girls might have worn to school. |
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We note a pages from the 1950 Sears Winter catalog with a variety of boys' shoes. There was a range of lace up and buckle shoes, uncluding high-top styles and saddle shoes. There was also double-bar sandals. Most of the styles shown on the left page seemed to be for girls.
This saddle shoe was done in both red and white and brown and white. They were widely worn by both boys and girls in the 1950s. The ones I wore in the 1950s were black and white. I don't recall boys wearing the red and white ones. The ad copy read, "Serviceable Rompabout Saddle. Flexible, smooth under foot. Firm counter for snug heel fit. Wear-packed Searosole, rubber heel." I'm not sure why it was called "Rompabout". I think the suggestion was that it was a casual play style. A reader writes, "I was interested in your comment about wearing black and white saddle shoes when you were 7 years old (I presume these were the blucher type as illustrated in the catalog). In New Jersey where I group up about the same time, the kids only wore brown and white. I only saw black and white later. I did, however, see a six year old girl wearing green and white blucher saddle shoes to school, which I thought at the time to be very interesting. I never saw either sex wearing red and white ones, except older cheerleaders, and these were the bal type saddles. I would say that there might have been regional differences involved. It would be interesting to study this (I'm a historical geographer by training). However, this would be difficult because the color ads I see are national in scope, whereas most of the photographs are still black and white, and we can't study regional color differences very easily." HBC notes that while I was indeed 7 years old, I did not begin weariung saddle shoes until I was older in high school, about 1958. Mine were black and white. I am afaid my memory is not good enough to recall what colors oyhers were wearing. It seems to me that they wrere black and white, but brown and white is possible. I never saw boys wearing red and white.
The Sears ad copy read, "Two-strap Slip-on designed to fit correctly, give plenty of room. Embossed woven vamp. Sturdy, foot conforming leather upper. Long-wearing Searosole, rubber heel." It was done in brown and red. This appears to be a combination of a double trap sandal and a slip-on loafer. I don't recall ever seeing a shoe like this.
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