Boots

[Trap]

 I told Del I would do this last summer , so I figured I better get to it.
Had a chance to visit the Boot exibit of the Ks historical society. Most of it is from after our time , but here is a review of the pre 1900 info.
The cowboy boot owes it's origins to 2 European styles. A hessian soldiers boot w/ a V cut front which came to America during the Revolution. And a Wellington that was worn under the pants.
Two men are credited with the first. J.W. Cubine of Coffeyville KS. who in1875 was making a transition military-cowboy boot w/ a straight top and a broad round toe. It was reffered to as "The Dad Blamed Boss"
the other was C. H. Heyer of Olathe Ks . the story goes, a cowboy ordered a pair of boots W/ a pointed toe and high heels to fit the stirrups. They had a "scalloped" front.
Tradition credits both with the first left- right boots.
Whoever was first, by the 1880 census there were these boot makers Recorded in the west.
AZ 3
CA 535
CO 44
ID 11
KS 212
MT 17
NE 102
NV 24
NM 6
OR 86
TX 163
UT 59
WY 12

Teddy blue recollected after a drive he bought a pair of boots with colored tops of red and blue with half moons and stars on them.
Hope this is of interest to someone.   jt

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Very interesting.

[Wymore Wrangler]

Any pictures Trap???

[Trap]

  No pictures, sorry. the only examples they had were post 1900.

[Delmonico]

I had forgot that, but thanks pard. I just restarted reading Log of a Cowboy by Andy Adams and it takes place in 1881 and one of the guys went into a Texas town and bought a pair with red tops and a star.  Course the durn fool tossed his boots at a coyote that was hangin' round camp and one landed it the cook fire.

No record of what Barney McCann did, but cooks don't like furrin' objects tossed in their fires.

[Silver Creek Slim]

Thanks fer the info, Trap.

Slim

[Ottawa Creek Bill]

Trap,
Very interesting material. Was there anything on wether or not any of the boot makers were influenced by all the foot wear that came west after the Civil War worn by ex enlisted personell from both the North and the South? I would have liked to have seen photos but still some good info.

Bill

[Delmonico]

I'm going to take a stabbing guess here and will say that I bet the pointed toe was not the extreme pointed toe one sees on most so called "cowboy" boots to day, but one slightly more pointed than the true rounded toe.

But since many of those boot makers made boots up on a custom basis, I would say some of their product might surprise a few folks.

[Trap]

OCB
Nothing except that the Coffeyville shop was making a transition Mil-Cowboy boot. I am sure that military boots were a big influence, after all, These references say 1875 as the beginning. The cattle trails were certainly active before then, I imagine many were wearing brogans, or military boots.  jt

[Trap]

  As I remember the words to "Little Joe the Wrangler" he wore brogans and one OK spur