Buckleless Spur Straps Project

[WaddWatsonEllis]

I decided to buy some Fort Frontier boots, but the keyhole was a dead giveaway as and anachronism ... they didn't seem to reach the West until well after the turn of the century.

So making lemonade out of lemons, I 'modified' a pair of Will Ghormleys buckleless spur strapps with spots (which is good'cause I haven't even begun to learn to do the floral pattern shown for the straps.

And I used the leftover leather from my holsters so that it looks like they are a matched set ... Then next comes a set of cowboy cuffs with spots and a slotted concho that matches he holsters ...

But the nicest thing is that they cover the keyhole and make them look like period boots ....

[santee]

Nice job. They'll match your Ringo rig nicely.

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Darn good looking, Wad. That's a great solution. Nice work.

[TwoWalks Baldridge]

WaddWatsonEllis  dang nice job on the spur straps, they look great.  For someone new to all of this, "What is the Key hole'?  I have a feeling but not sure.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Two  Walks,

Originally boots were made 'unifoot' (My word) ... meaning they fit either foot ... no left or right.

The key hole came later into the construction of the boot ... originally, like the boots in the attached pic, the leather was tortuously wrapped around a foot form and then stretched all in one piece to form the shaft .... like the pics below.

It has been told to me that the Duke of Wellington first wore boots with 'keyholes' ... at least he popularized them. At first they were rediculously expensive ...but some time after the turn of the century I am told that bootmakers realized that it took far less labor to take two separate pieces of leather and join them with a tab coming up from the foot (called a keyhole).

So by using spur straps that effectively hide the keyhole, the boots can be used as a reenactors boot with more comfort and far better soles than the pegged leather ones  ... for about $30 to $50 less  for a cheap pair (and on sale at that)

[TwoWalks Baldridge]

WWE thanks for the reply, that is what I thought, but was not sure.  Interesting about the Duke of Wellington also ... might do some reading on that.

[TwoWalks Baldridge]

WWE, I found this online and it struck me as interesting, thought you might enjoy.

"In 1815, Arthur Wellsley, First Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. In the wake of his victory and his ensuing popularity, Wellington boots became THE style. The major difference in these boots from previous styles was that the heels were low cut and the tops were only calf high. At Northampton there is a pair of dress wellingtons made in 1817. They are a four piece boot--vamp, counter cover, front and back tops--with beaded side seams (the same layout as a modern cowboy boot).
The vamps and counter covers are black patent leather, the tops are maroon with an olive top binding and trim...and they have a fancy decorative stitch pattern on the front of the leg. With 1" stacked leather heels and inside canvas pulls they are remarkably like the western boots that later became part of the history of the American frontier. In 1847, S.C. Shive, in America, patented the patterns and crimping board for what we call a Full Wellington--a two piece boot that found wide acceptance among the military, horsemen, and adventurers of the time. By 1868 Wellingtons were almost exclusively an American style, not much seen in a Europe which preferred the Hessian boot. "

This makes it sound as if the four piece boot was around in 1817 and replaced in 1847 with the two piece boot. Seems strange.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Wellington started the trend, to be sure ... and had green and red topsides ... and they became the fad in Europe. But the fad died down, and it is my hunch the one piece front would have stayed but for the rapid increase in the costs of labor ... if you look at the army and cavalry boots, they were pretty much one piece 'cause they were grinding out thousands and used the same forms and lasts everyt time.

But as the cowboy boot came on the scene, mostly custom made in small batches or for an individual, it was discovered post Civil War that a pair of individual boots, with their pointed toe and Cuban heel, could be much cheaper if the front toe and shaft were made out of two separate pieces of leather ...

It was also somewhere in this time period that boots were made for right and left feet ... until then all boots were made for either foot and people wore them into left or right foot boots.

I don't have much written history on this, but I believe it didn't happen overnight ... a cowboy or a bootmaker would find something he liked, and it was spread by cowboys as they did the long trail drives ....

[ChuckBurrows]

Skip - nicely done sir!

As for the history of boots and shoes - here's some good info on western boots and their history....DW Frommer is the man when it comes to the history or making of boots
http://www.shoeinfonet.com/about%20shoes/history/history%20western%20boots/history%20western%20boots.htm

Paired lasts were used much earlier than most think, back even into the middle ages. In the 1600's the straight last became popular (due in part to tall heels) until the late 1700's when paired lasts began to be more widely used again and were definitley quite widely worn by many if not most civilians - Like now the military gear did not always reflect what the civilians wore and was not always the best quality but rather the best bang for the buck..

I decided to buy some Fort Frontier boots, but the keyhole was a dead giveaway as and anachronism ... they didn't seem to reach the West until well after the turn of the century.

Actually four part boots hit the west at least as early as 1878 - the link below is to a pic of Wild Ben Raymond oi Leadville, Colorado in 1878 - note his four piece style boots - so what some folks might say is an anachronism isn't really dependent on your impression. Four piece boots may not have been as "common" in the west, but they were far from not being known pre-1900, it just all depended on how much money you wanted to spend. Look at townie pics and others to see more Full Wellingtons.
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/WWgunfighter2.jpg

Unfortunately there is a lot of mis-info put out by even some of the better re-enactor groups. For instance a few years ago I read that scallop tops boots were not "correct" pre-1898 on a highly regarded western re-enactors site - sorry no cigar folks. They go back to at least the late 1870's early 1880's - just take a look at Ed Schiefflein's boots in the link below - the guy who founded Tombstone, AZ in 1879 (the pic is IIRC circa 1881).
http://wwwdelivery.superstock.com/WI/223/990/PreviewComp/SuperStock_990-2757.jpg

This makes it sound as if the four piece boot was around in 1817 and replaced in 1847 with the two piece boot. Seems strange.

Not really strange - riding boots, both four and two piece types were being made at least as far back as the late Middle Ages - what the later styles were is refinement of the earlier boots. While the two piece Full Wellington was popular in the US it was not so popular elsewhere. The four piece Dress Wellington though as noted above was not unknown in the US or even in the west dependent as always on who, when, and where.
A two piece Full Wellington can be made very nice and smooth over the instep, but on the other hand lots were not so well made - look at some of the old pics and note the wrinkles which tain't comfortable at all......a four piece is much easier to mold properly.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Chuck,

As usual, succint and to the point .... I wish I was less verbose and more agile with my thoughts ...

I can only wish that I was reeenacting the 1870s;  the Old Sacramento Living History Program (oslhp.net) reenacts the happenings of the Gold rush, 1849-1850.

And according to the Old Sacramento Living History Program, there were no keyholed boots in Sacramento in 1849. Hence my worries about keyholes on my boots ....

[WaddWatsonEllis]

P.S.

This Saturday is the Bonnet Parade (There, I said it PC)

Look for pics towards the middle or the week in the Histoical Society ....

[TwoWalks Baldridge]

WWE and Chuck great information and discussion, Thanks.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

On my part, sir, you are far too kind ....

But as for Chuck, I really think he has forgot more than I will ever begin to know .... it is always a pleasure to have him join in ...

Thanks!

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Hi,

It is the end of the week and I still have not recieved any pics other than this one of me, and since it shows the buckleless spur staps and boots, I'll post it here ....