Shoemaker

 Whether an ancestor was listed as a cobbler or a shoemaker, it's pretty much the same thing. Isn't it?

My 6 times great uncle. Thomas Bass, (1719-1786) Lived in Norfok VA and Bertie, NC was listed as a cordwainer or shoe maker.

Cordwainer vs. Cobbler vs. Shoemaker
Getting the Lingo Right

Before we get started, we need to know what we are discussing:

• Cordwainer: The English term for shoemakers, which originated from France
• Shoemaker: Artisan who works with new leather to make shoes
• Cobbler: Forbidden to work with new leather. They are the shoe repairmen, who must make their repairs with old leather

While nowadays the terms may be interchangeable, it was considered a major insult to call a shoemaker a cobbler! After all, it is believed that Cobblers got their name from the phrase “to cobble things together,” which meant to work clumsily.

Walking through history

Shoemakers have existed all through human history, whether it’s been:

• Working with cord and leather or grass to create the first sandals to
• Carving out the insides of the wooden clogs used in the Medival Europe (yes, those famous shoes from Holland) to
• Working on leather moccasins to
• Working with new leather to create soft slippers for royalty

They’ve been one of the most important trades in the history of the world.
They even helped with the creation of the new colonies in America:

• In the first American colony of Jamestown, VA, 1607, a cobbler was abroad the ship to the new world. Since importing new materials was expensive, the cobblers were able to get people’s shoes going until the Cordwainers could come to the colony later in 1629.
• Shoemakers and Cobblers were such important trades that they started the first unions in the country! The Shoemakers of Boston, of 1648, and The Daughters of St. Crispin (the patron saint of Cobblers) was the first female union in the US.
• Cobblers were also important because, as they traveled around to the rural towns and cities of the American colonies, they took the news with them as well.
• Eventually, the shoemakers and cobblers were able to settle down in cities and have their clients come to them. They were able to have apprentices and have tiers of labor, which helped lead them right into the storm of the Industrial Age.

Surviving the Industrial Age
Industrialization was not a kind time for many people and the makers and cobblers were no different. The 4 people who helped usher in the fall of these men were:

• 1812: Marc Brunei created a tool to help affix leather uppers to the shoe outers with metal pins
• 1846: The creation of the sewing machine made sewing leather faster and in need of fewer laborers.
• 1850 Thomas Crick created a rolling riveter and cutter for shoes
• 1864: Lyman Blake creates a sewing machine for shoes

Thus the factories were able to mass-produce shoes at cheaper prices, taking the shoes out of the 

hands of the people who had been making them since civilization began.

It was around the 1850s when, as work became scarce, shoemakers had to turn to the lowly art of shoe repair to make ends meet. This was when the distinction between shoemaker and a cobbler began to fade, until today they are almost synonymous to most of the public.
So, What Now?
While shoemakers and cobblers are not common anymore, there are still some trying to keep the trades alive. The recession in 2008 did spurn customers back towards the cobblers to keep their shoes lasting longer as money was tight.

The younger generations, like Millenials and Gen Z, are trying to live a less wasteful society so there 

is a chance that shoes repaired and well-kept will keep the cobblers in business in the future.

Thanks to the Old Timey

So when one kicks off his/her shoes and wiggles their feet in the sand, they can thank a shoemaker for keeping their feet safe from sand-spurs, hot sand, rocks, pieces  of broken glass, rough edged shells, etc.

Today's quote:

What power has love but forgiveness? -William Carlos Williams, poet (17 Sep 1883-1963)