SHOEMAKING

HISTORY

Timeline of Shoe History

40000 BC – First archeological evidence of protective foot coverings found in Ice Age settlements. 

4000 BC –First recorded mentioning of shoes as “flexible pieces of leather” in Ancient Egypt. 

3627 BC – Archeologist find physical evidence of the earliest known leather shoe near cave dwellings in Armenia. 

Around 1000 AD – Shoes and sandals become commonplace across Europe.

12th and 13th century – Noble and royal families start acquiring fashion shoes.

1750 – Larger towns had shoe shops stocking product from more than one shoemaker which gave consumers more diversity in style.

1789 – The French Revolution brought an end to high-heeled footwear, and popularized more modest designs. 

1790 – English invent shoelaces. 

1810 – Increased demand for footwear due to Napoleonic wars, around 250,000 British soldiers needing boots. 

1883 - African-American inventor Jan Ernst Matzeliger invents machine for automated production of shoes. 

1888 – First high heeled shoe factory opens in United States. 

1917 – First successful sneakers start being sold in the United States.