Clinton News-Record, 1984-05-09, Page 52Shoemaker returns to Clinton
• from page 2 6
have no meaning or purpose. Makers
and owners used their imagination for
designs and colors. In the past some
shoes were carved for design. Now
shoes have designs painted on. Ap-
parently there is no traditional color,
design or ceremonial shoe for certain
areas, but there are many fancy shoes.
It seems Drente's traditional shoe
color was white and Freisland wore
black shoes for special days. Also in
Freisland, wearers of shoes were iden-
tified as livestock dealers, especially
cattle buyers. This was like a
trademark.
In the southern provinces of the
Netherlands, such as Noord Brabant,
Limburg and Zeeland, the yellow shoes
were popular with all the wearers. The
sail boaters of long ago wore a slightly
different design. However, all wooden
shoes are basically the same.
The wooden shoe has a long life. Even
when the shoe is cracked or broken
there were always ways of extending its
life. Soccer, a popular sport in Holland,
resulted in thewearand tear- of many
pairs of regular leather shoes until
mothers decided their sons would wear
wooden shoes or not play. anymore! A
simple procedure using wire repaired
any broken or cracked shoe.
During the depression in the early
1930s, when wooden shoes were hard to
buy, they were made by people that
didn't necessarily know how. Some of
these shoes were roughly made and un-
comfortable. Tin was tacked on the bot-
tom of the shoes to make them last
longer. When the weather turned cold,
hay or straw was put in the shoes to
keep the feet warm.
Many wooden shoes were made for
Canadian soldiers to take home after
the Second World War. In 1982 some
80,000 pair of wooden shoes were ex-
ported to the European Economic Com-
munity (EEC) in Europe alone.
Once again Mr. John Krans, born on a
farm near Drachtse Campagnie, will
attend Klompen Feest with his special
display of wooden shoes.
Mr. Krans' first trade was the skill of
making. handmade shoes. He later
became involved with the machine
making method. Today, he lives in
Breslau, a small town between Kit-
chener and Guelph, where he renovates
and -builds •houses. .After. moving to
Canada, Mr. Krans made the shoes as a
hobby but he eventually abandoned the
skill.
Page 27
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