Man's Riding Boots

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Subject

Accessories

Title

Man's Riding Boots

Date

ca. 1858

Format

The foot is 7 centimeters at its widest in the footbox and 3 cms at its narrowest where the arch of the foot would be.

The leg of the boot is 26 cms high in the front and 31 cms high in the back.

The full heel is 4 cms high and 4 cms long, while being about 3.75 cms wide.

The boot has both a vamp and a counter, with the vamp being about 20 cms long, while the counter is only 4 cms.

Description

These riding boots belonged to Robert Gardner (1841-1907), who was a lawyer and land surveyor. Robert's father, Zebulon, traveled to California in 1850. At the age of 17, Robert followed his father, probably purchasing the boots on his arrival on his arrival to nothern California.

As for the boots themselves, they are made from two types of black leather. The leg of the boot is made from a grained leather, while the rest of the boot is made from a smooth leather. The stacked heel is also made of leather and features last on the bottom. They are quite narrow, which was considered fashionable at the time. It has two pull straps attached at the top of the leg for assistance with getting the boot on. The leg also has stitching on both sides of the boot, likely where the pull strap is attached, and along the back of the boot.The vamp goes higher in the front as compared to the counter in the back.

References

Lykken, E. A. (2004). Robert Gardner’s Buckskin Suit: A Material Cultural Study [Unpublished master’s thesis]. University of Rhode Island.

Matthews David, A. (2011). In G. Riello & P. McNeil (eds) Shoes. Bloomsbury Academic.

Source

Donor: Estate of Mrs. John Gardner

Identifier

URI 1955.36.91

Contributor

Bailey Honer-Chavez

Creator

Diette & Berk
235 Bush St. Prudential Hotel, San Francisco

Citation

Diette & Berk 235 Bush St. Prudential Hotel, San Francisco, “Man's Riding Boots,” Historic Textile and Costume Collection, accessed May 18, 2024, https://uritextilecollection.omeka.net/items/show/513.