Boot & Shoe Makers
by SLHS on
Friday 22 July 2016
Boot and shoe makers were popular in Somercotes during the 19th and 20th centuries. As the population grew, so did the number of shoe makers who made a living in the village.
Perhaps of all the names on this list, Arthur Tarlton’s is mentioned the most often. His shoe shop was founded in 1902 on Nottingham Road, Somercotes and in 2016 is still owned by the same family. Arthur’s nephew, also named Arthur, made the cycling shoes for the British Olympic cycling team of 1928, who competed in the Amsterdam Games. The team won a bronze medal.
Another name that is repeated often is Wass. This family owned a shoe shop on Somercotes Hill, which was situated on the corner of George Street.
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1828: | |
| BOWLER, Samuel | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes (also listed in 1831 & 1835) |
| SLACK, James | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes (also listed in 1831 & 1835) |
| SMITH, Charles | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes (also listed in 1831 & 1835) |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1849: | |
| ORME, Richard | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| SLACK, James | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes (also listed as a shopkeeper) |
| SMITH, Charles | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1857: | |
| ORME, Richard | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| WASS, Joseph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1876: | |
| ANDERSON, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| HOLDEN, Samuel | Boot & Shoe Maker - Greenhill Lane |
| MOORE, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| ORME, Richard | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| WASS, Joseph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1895: | |
| MOORE, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes (also listed as a dealer and draper) |
| WASS, Ralph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| WRIGHT, Henry & Co. | Boot Dealer - Somercote (this firm were also listed as Assurance agents) |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1908: | |
| BETTISON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Makers - Somercotes |
| CARR, John William | Boot Maker - Somercotes |
| FRISBY, Joseph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| GREAVES, Harry | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| MOORE, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - High Street, Somercotes |
| SANDERS, John | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes (Arthur founded his business in 1902) |
| WASS, Ralph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| WIDDOWSON, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Leabrooks |
ADVERTISEMENT: An advert for Arthur Tarlton's Shoe Shop from the Somercotes parish magazine published in September 1928. Note the reference to "hand-made pit boots"!
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1916: | |
| BILBIE, William James | Boot Repairer - Somercotes |
| FRISBY, Joseph Ltd. | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| GREAVES, Harry | Boot Maker - Somercotes |
| MOORE, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| WASS, Ralph | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill (Ralph is listed as a Boot Repairer) |
| WIDDOWSON, William | Boot Maker - Leabrooks |
| WOOD, John | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1925: | |
| BILBIE, William James | Boot Repairer - Somercotes |
| FRISBY, Joseph Ltd | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| GREAVES, Harry | Boot Maker - Somercotes |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| WIDDOWSON, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Leabrooks |
| WOOD, John | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1932: | |
| FRANKLIN, Sidney | Boot & Shoe Repairer - Pye Bridge |
| GREAVES, Harry | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes |
| HOLMES, Frederick | Boot & Shoe Maker - Leabrooks Road, Somercotes |
| SEVERN, John G | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| WASS, David | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| WIDDOWSON, William | Boot & Shoe Maker - Leabrooks |
ADVERTISEMENT: An advert for Tarlton's Shoe Shop from a Somercotes parish magazine. The date is not known but is probably from the early 1960s.
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS LISTED IN 1941: | |
| HOLMES, Frederick | Boot & Shoe Maker - Leabrooks Road, Somercotes |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Maker - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| WASS, David | Boot & Shoe Maker - Somercotes Hill |
| BOOT & SHOE MAKERS IN 1965 (NOT COMPLETE): | |
| TARLTON, Arthur | Boot & Shoe Dealer - Nottingham Road, Somercotes |
| WRAY, Don | Boot & Shoe Repairer (Cobbler) - Mill Street, Somercotes.(Don worked from a long wooded shed that was located on Mill Street at the side of the Chapel wall, now A. Storer's). |