The Cobbling Trade

The Cobbling Trade. . , The shoe and boot making trade is one of the oldest vocations in Canada. The first census of 1666 recorded 20 shoemakers serving a population of little more than 3,200 people. In the early 19th century, many shoemakers in rural areas worked out of their home or an adjacent shop. Some would travel door-to-door, taking measurements and hand-crafting shoes or boots for their customers. Shoemakers, that worked in larger urban centres were likely one of several employees, each performing a specialized task in the production cycle., Tools of the Trade , Cobblers and harness makers would have used many of the same leather-working tools. A shoemaker's or cobbler's hammer (right), was used to hammer small nails or rivets into the sole of a shoe or boot., Lasting pliers (top left), were used to grip and stretch the leather over a shoe last., The punch (bottom left), was used to make a hole in the leather, usually for laces., Made from iron, a cobbler's foot or last (right), was used to hold a shoe or boot in place while being repaired. It was placed on an iron stand that was mounted on a work bench or floor stand. The "foot" was often made in a range of sizes to fit the shoe or boot under repair., A cobbler is a tradesperson that mends or repairs shoes and boots. Shoemakers often took exception to being called a cobbler, as it was thought to be a less skilled occupation., The advent of mechanized equipment in the mid-19th century meant that shoes and boots could be mass-produced in large factories. Many smaller shoemaking businesses were forced to close because they could not compete with this revolutionized industry. As a result, harness shops that serviced rural areas, such as the W. Rigney Harness Shop, would have provided cobbling and leather repair services as a convenience to their customers.