The Art of Boot and Shoemaking

From inside the book:
Despite the extreme antiquity of the art of which the Author has here treated, it was not till the commencement of the present century that the first known attempt to treat of Boot and Shoemaking from a practical standpoint was made by Mr. Rees. This treatise was followed by the works of O'Sullivan and Devlin, that of the latter forming a portion of the series of practical works issued under the superintendence of the late Mr. Charles Knight.

The art of Boot and Shoemaking may be said to have undergone a complete revolution during the past fifty years, and it is consequently impossible that works written so long since as those mentioned could satisfy the requirements of the present day.

The introduction and successful application of machinery, the increased division of labour, the improved methods and instruments adopted and employed by modern craftsmen, and the use of new materials, are sufficient, besides other considerations, to justify and necessitate the production of a modern treatise on the subject. Notwithstanding the acknowledged success that has attended the employment of machinery, hand-making still retains a leading position in the Boot and Shoemaking industry; and although the number of men now employed is not equal to those formerly engaged in handwork, the status of those remaining has in no sense declined. The best class of Boots and Shoes are those made by hand for our leading "bespoke" masters; and it is, moreover, from the ranks of this department of the trade that the most competent machine workers are continuously recruited; therefore it is that, in the present work, the author has devoted so large a portion of the space at his command to hand-production, in which it may safely be said that the true art of the Shoemaker lies. The author will not conclude these prefatory remarks without tendering his sincere thanks to Mr. Tyrrell for his valuable assistance.

1. Historical
2. The Anatomy of the Foot
3. The Foot:—Its Ailments, and Their Remedies
4. Measurement
5. Lasts
6. Fitting Up the Last
7. Choice and Purchase of Materials
8. Cutting Out
9. Fitting and Closing
10. Boot and Shoemaking: Men’s Work
11. Boot and Shoemaking: Women’s Work
12. Leggings and Gaiters
13. Mending
14. Furring
15. Bows and Rosettes
16. Boot and Shoe Armour: Tips, Plates, and Nails
17. Kit-Cutting
18. Sharpening Knives and Awls
19. Special Operations
20. Boot and Shoe Machines
2.1 Leather Cutting, Splitting, and Rolling Machines
22. Machines Employed for Preparatory Processes—Upper Splitting and Skiving
23. Upper Closing and Sole Attaching Machines
24. Machines for Building, Moulding, Attaching, Breasting, and Finishing Heels
25. Machines Used for Levelling Seams of Uppers, Edge Setting, and Levelling and Buffing Bottoms
26. Useful Receipts for Shoemakers
27. Conclusion

This book published in 1885 has been converted for the Kindle and may contain an occasional defect from the original publication or from the reformatting.