Cowboy Boots, with no question, there's a romance and a mystique to them. Spot a vintage pair and they're sure to have a story.
The legends and lore surrounding the unique footwear are as richly tooled as the history of the American West. Before kids wanted to be "like Mike", they yearned to be like cowboy and cowgirl legends of Hollywood, Gene Autry, Roy Rodgers, Dale Evans, and Hopalong Cassidy to name a few.
If you grew up in the 1950's, it's likely your cowboy boots were among your most prized possessions.
Cowboy Boots: Early Forerunners
Legend has it that cowboy boots can be traced back to Genghis Khan, who wore distinctive red boots with wooden heels. Arthur Wellesly, the first Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815 and gave his name to a calf-length boot with a low heel. The Wellington's four piece construction, the same used for modern cowboy boots, made it easy to mass produce. Wellingtons were preferred by soldiers during the U.S. Civil War. When the war ended in 1865, soldiers took their boots home with them.
A few years later, America ushered in the era of the cowboy, and the cowboy boot as we know it today.
Footwear for Cattle Drives
From 1865 to 1890, cowboys drove cattle from Texas to Kansas. They wore Wellingtons and variations. The tall top of the boots protected their legs, and the under-slung heels kept their feet in the stirrups. The cowboy boot's original design elements were suited to the horseback rider, including the rounded or pointed toe that makes it easy to insert the foot in the stirrup and the slick sole that allows the boot to slip free when dismounting.
Early cowboy boots were work boots and were suitable utilitarian in appearance.
With actors such as Gene Autry and Roy Rodgers, Hollywood made heroes out of cowboys and fashion icons out of cowboy boots. Filmmakers adapted the ideals of the era of the cowboy, the rugged individualism, strength, self-reliance and independence, and popularized the cowboy code of honor. The leading men playing those roles wore hand-tooled boots with star designs, embossing and inlays that added to the mystique.
Modern Incarnations of Cowboy Boots
Today, cowboy boots are once again in the public eye, made fashionable by politicians such as President George W. Bush and Hollywood celebs including Rachel Bilson. Cowboys of yesteryear, however, would drop their six-shooters at the sight of the boots in stores today and the price tags they have.
Whereas traditional cowboy boots were made from cowhide, with customization limited mostly to decorative stitching, their modern counterparts are available in a multitude of colors and can be made from exotic skins such as ostrich or stingray. Silver or gold toe tips, hand-worked leather inlays and exotic ornamentation can also be added to the boots.
Every generation at some point discovers cowboy boots, they're simple icons.
By: Ja-Net
The legends and lore surrounding the unique footwear are as richly tooled as the history of the American West. Before kids wanted to be "like Mike", they yearned to be like cowboy and cowgirl legends of Hollywood, Gene Autry, Roy Rodgers, Dale Evans, and Hopalong Cassidy to name a few.
If you grew up in the 1950's, it's likely your cowboy boots were among your most prized possessions.
Cowboy Boots: Early Forerunners
Legend has it that cowboy boots can be traced back to Genghis Khan, who wore distinctive red boots with wooden heels. Arthur Wellesly, the first Duke of Wellington, defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815 and gave his name to a calf-length boot with a low heel. The Wellington's four piece construction, the same used for modern cowboy boots, made it easy to mass produce. Wellingtons were preferred by soldiers during the U.S. Civil War. When the war ended in 1865, soldiers took their boots home with them.
A few years later, America ushered in the era of the cowboy, and the cowboy boot as we know it today.
Footwear for Cattle Drives
From 1865 to 1890, cowboys drove cattle from Texas to Kansas. They wore Wellingtons and variations. The tall top of the boots protected their legs, and the under-slung heels kept their feet in the stirrups. The cowboy boot's original design elements were suited to the horseback rider, including the rounded or pointed toe that makes it easy to insert the foot in the stirrup and the slick sole that allows the boot to slip free when dismounting.
Early cowboy boots were work boots and were suitable utilitarian in appearance.
With actors such as Gene Autry and Roy Rodgers, Hollywood made heroes out of cowboys and fashion icons out of cowboy boots. Filmmakers adapted the ideals of the era of the cowboy, the rugged individualism, strength, self-reliance and independence, and popularized the cowboy code of honor. The leading men playing those roles wore hand-tooled boots with star designs, embossing and inlays that added to the mystique.
Modern Incarnations of Cowboy Boots
Today, cowboy boots are once again in the public eye, made fashionable by politicians such as President George W. Bush and Hollywood celebs including Rachel Bilson. Cowboys of yesteryear, however, would drop their six-shooters at the sight of the boots in stores today and the price tags they have.
Whereas traditional cowboy boots were made from cowhide, with customization limited mostly to decorative stitching, their modern counterparts are available in a multitude of colors and can be made from exotic skins such as ostrich or stingray. Silver or gold toe tips, hand-worked leather inlays and exotic ornamentation can also be added to the boots.
Every generation at some point discovers cowboy boots, they're simple icons.
By: Ja-Net
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