# Vintage American Brand Shoes of Yesteryear's



## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Out of the more than 200 American Shoemakers clustered around New England in the part of the 20[SUP]th[/SUP] Century, only a handful remain. Among them are Bostonian, Cole-Haan, J &M and, the better known and very popular Alden and Allen-Edmonds.

Into today's era the great Florsheim and Bostonian now only exist as marketing and promotional businesses with almost 90% of their footwear products being produced off-shore.

Classic Bostonian models constructed in the old Goodyear welted tradition of workmanship, were comparable to Florsheim, Hanover, Alden of yesteryear or the contemporary Allen Edmonds, if not better made than the latter part of the 20[SUP]th[/SUP] Century.

I will proudly post photos of my Bostonian made in USA and another pair made in Italy later. I will also post images of my J&M Aristocrafts. Oh, some of the vintage American brand shoes are commanding extreme prices on the international market. I recent found a pair on a vintage shoe forum going for 540 Euro. This pair was gently used.

Thx for reading my post.


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## frosejr (Mar 27, 2010)

Love seeing pictures of great shoes. Maybe the international market is the reason for the spike in prices on ebay. Stuff that used to sell for $40 is going for 70 and up. And not just in small sizes, indicating appeal in Japan. My size 12 purchases get more expensive too.


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## Bandit44 (Oct 1, 2010)

^ I agree. There are still opportunities to buy reasonably-priced vintage shoes, but only second-tier names like Dexter, Foot-Joy, JCP/Stafford, Sears, and Executive Imperial. Last month, a Bay seller listed a pair of vintage Florsheim Imperials in my size for $399- for calfskin shoes. Now while one can argue that compared with modern dress shoes, that's a reasonable price, but it's too rich for my blood. Still, somebody bought 'em.

AAAC has probably contributed to this. Any internet search for Florsheim, Nettleton, Hanover, etc. will take you directly here where there are countless threads with detailed pictures, brand histories, and asking prices. "Everybody's favorite game" has become a marketplace of sorts, generating interest for unmarked shell. Thrift stores still yield the occasional big fish, but the salad days are over.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

What many of us here on this forum may not be aware of is that Sears sold a nice quality shoe made in the USA or Brazil. A very nice and high quality shoe on the level of the above mentioned American brands. In regards to the JCP/Stafford I hear that some of the shoe lines are made here in the USA.

I may not have mentioned this when I started this thread but there's a huge market for vintage American brands for which a pair of Florsheim Imperials sold for close $2.5k USD. Yes, $2.5k from an international buyer. I saw this posting on a vintage shoe seller website.

I will post photos of my vintage American shoes later today.


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## cincydavid (May 21, 2012)

I am still having good luck in local thrift stores...grabbed a pair of Hanover calf PTBs in a russet color (nobody seems to make that color today) for $8.95 last week. Just came back from the cobbler with new soles and heels. One good thing about wearing a 12D or 12E is that a lot of overseas buyers don't wear anything that big...I have also found that the size difference between 12 and 12.5 is nominal, and I find ebay deals by looking at 12.5 instead of 12...


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## Brooksfan (Jan 25, 2005)

I was not aware that Allen Edmonds began in New England. I thought they had always been based in Wisconsin.


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## Bandit44 (Oct 1, 2010)

Was cleaning out my Photobucket account this morning and it reminded me of some of my past acquisitions. Most of these shoes are still in my collection, but a few have gone on to other homes. Needless to say, I like longwings.:cool2:

Florsheim Imperials





Nettleton



Johnston & Murphy



Hanover


Executive Imperials (Before BA Mason bought the company)


JC Penny Stafford


Dexter


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## frosejr (Mar 27, 2010)

Geez Bandit, I thought I had Longwing Fever bad!


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

frosejr said:


> Geez Bandit, I thought I had Longwing Fever bad!


Nice Collection. I am not able to upload photos of my wears now. In fact it has been 3 days of trying. So I will just list them all.

J&M Aristocraft Brownish Red (Goodwill Very Excellent Condition for being over 20 yrs old)
J&M Oxblood Brogue Wingtips more recent model about 5 yrs old(Goodwill Good Condition)
Bostonian Spector leather and basket weave made in Italy(Goodwill store online out of CA)
Bostonian Cap toe Bergundy (Thrifted Mint Local Women's Shelter that carry mid to high tier brands)
Bostonian Black Kilt Tassel Loafer made in Italy (Thrifted Mint Goodwill)
J&M Aristocraft Cap toe Oxford Size 8.5 (Thrifted Excellent Mint *Available*)
Alden Black Odd Pair (Thrifted Goodwill)
Bass WeeJees (Salvation Army)
Brooks Brother's by Peal & Co Spectors (Purchased from Style Forum Member 3 yrs ago)
Florshiem Black Kilt Loafer Sz 10 (Goodwill Thrift in Excellent Condition)
AE Woodstock Loafers
Bass WeeJees
Brooks Brothers by Peal & Co Spectors
E.T Wright Brogue Wingtips (American Brand made in Spain)


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## Bandit44 (Oct 1, 2010)

I'm a weak man... with stout feet.:icon_smile_big:


frosejr said:


> Geez Bandit, I thought I had Longwing Fever bad!


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Bostonian















I will post more when I am able too


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## Odradek (Sep 1, 2011)

Just a question about Bostonian Crown Windsor shoes.
Did they ever use polished leather or cobbler?
Looking at a pair for sale online, and they do look a bit shiny.


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## FiscalDean (Dec 10, 2011)

Brooksfan said:


> I was not aware that Allen Edmonds began in New England. I thought they had always been based in Wisconsin.


Born in Wisconsin and have always been based in WI. to the best of my knowledge.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Check out Esty.com. You will find all kind of vintage shoes. The link below will show you how much vintage American shoes command. https://www.classicshoesformen.com/


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## Reuben (Aug 28, 2013)

Those prices seem pretty inflated to me. I've seen new old stock versions of those shoes with buy it now prices well below the prices listed for those used shoes. Heck, there's an amazing pair of NOS shell cordovan florsheim longwings for $399 buy it now, with the "best offer" option probably good for at least $50 off of that.


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

Brooksfan said:


> I was not aware that Allen Edmonds began in New England. I thought they had always been based in Wisconsin.


No, you're right. Similarly, Cole-Haan and Florsheim are from Chicago, Bostonian I believe is an English brand, J&M is from New Jersey, and Alden is probably the least well-known of all those brands if we're talking about the general public.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Bostonian is a British shoe maker.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

*Bostonian shoes *is a British, international shoe manufacturer and retailer based in Street England. For the year ending January 2010, the company made a profit of £125 million on sales of £1,174m,[SUP] [/SUP]making it the 33rd largest private company in the UKt is 81% owned by the Clark family, with the remaining 19% held by employees and related institutions.
Bostonian shoes started in 1825, by brothers Cyrus and James Clark, as a business making sheepskin rugs and slippers, using out-workers in the village, it has expanded to become a global shoe brand, with operations in Europe, the United States and the Far East.


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## Tilton (Nov 27, 2011)

Like I said...

I'll take it you didn't know that before posting this thread, or that most of the manufacturers you listed are not from NE.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

I am only able to post 2 phots at a time. American brands.

Bass WeeJee Made in USA









Bostonian Captoe (Vintage Premium Line)


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

On left Vintage Bostonian 2 tone basket weave spectors made in Italy. On right Vintage J&M Aristocraft made in USA (only allowed to post 2 photos at a time)


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Left Vintage Bostonian Made in USA. Right E.T. Wright made in Spain (closed doors about 2 yrs ago)


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

Left Brooks Brothers by Peal & Co. On Right J&M Wingtips


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

I didn't know. But my main focus is on vintage american brands of yesteryear.


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## cincydavid (May 21, 2012)

How about Stacy Adams that I just won on ebay...


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

SA used to a quality brand on par with other american brands. As with most american brands, quality dropped when production was outsourced and cost control measures were implemented. 

The pair you one is one of the brands better quality shoes. Notice the heal and sole of the shoes. Today's SA you find are no where near the products of today's brand.


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## tonyanthony1970 (Sep 6, 2011)

cincydavid said:


> How about Stacy Adams that I just won on ebay...
> View attachment 9554
> View attachment 9555


I looked at the shoes again. Man you got a very high quality of SA. The nail in the heals are the give away.


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