The Honourable Cordwainers' Company
is pleased to announce the
37th Annual General Meeting
in cooperation with
Fort Ligonier
Ligonier, PA
October 21-23, 2022
After last year’s virtual AGM, we are convening in-person at Fort Ligonier, PA, this October 21-23. The virtual AGM was quite a success, especially as it allowed international members to contribute some wonderful talks. We are encouraged to include a virtual component in our in-person AGMs from now on, so that distant presenters, who otherwise cannot be there in-person, can attend and present.
We are looking forward to a great program at the Thirty-seventh Annual General Meeting of the Honourable Cordwainers’ Company, in cooperation with Fort Ligonier in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.
Speakers-to-date:
Brett Walker, Independent Historical Shoemaker
The Ft. Ligonier Shoe Collection
Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, ongoing archaeological work has inspired the finest reconstructed fortification from the French and Indian War. Today the site continues to provide research opportunities and scholarship, and Fort Ligonier possesses what might be the most remarkable collection of French and Indian War artifacts in North America. Finds from a refuse pit, covered in 1759 and sealed for the next 200 years, contained hundreds of men’s and perhaps two dozen women’s shoes, plus thousands more fragments! This is the largest single find of mid-18th-century footwear in the world. Since the 1960s, it has been the focus of exhaustive study by successive generations of researchers, yielding the bulk of what is known about footwear in British North America.
Edward Maeder, Costume & Textile Consultant, former Curator of Costumes and Textiles at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, founding director of the Bata Shoe Museum
Preparing the Stuart Weisman Shoe Collection for Exhibition
Prepared by Edward Maeder, Walk This Way: Footwear from the Stuart Weitzman Collection of Historic Shoes is a travelling exhibition from the New-York Historical Society Museum & Library, with a focus on the women who designed, manufactured, sold, and collected footwear, presenting the story of the shoe as it has never been told before. Featuring over 110 pieces from a collection assembled over several decades by the famous shoe designer and his wife, businesswoman and philanthropist Jane Gershon Weitzman, the exhibition ranges from a pair of satin wedding shoes worn in 1838 to a pair of glam-rock platform sandals from 1970s London. These unique artifacts allow Walk This Way to approach the story of the shoe from the perspectives of collection, consumption, production, design, and presentation. Elevated above the mundane task of protecting the skin of the foot from the crust of the earth, these shoes transcend their utilitarian purpose. As objects of desire and deliberation, they call up abstract considerations—like the freighted meanings of femininity, power, domination, and aspiration—for both women and men alike.
Matthew Schlicksup, Independent Historical Shoemaker
Follower’s Footwear: An Analysis of the Women’s Shoes in the Fort Ligonier Collection
While most of the leather shoe fragments preserved in Ligonier’s impressive collection represent men’s shoes, some also reveal exceptionally rare and astonishingly complete examples of women’s shoes. These objects not only represent the civilian female followers that were so crucial to 18th-century British armies, they also offer an unparalleled opportunity to study an unexpected variety of women's shoe styles and constructions from this era. By examining the original artifacts and reproducing some of the most complete examples using period tools and techniques, this research sheds new light on the types of shoes worn by women followers at Ligonier and brings these incredible pieces of footwear history to life.
Yancey von Yeast, Shoemaker and Tool Collector
Shoe Hammers I have Known
A Survey and Discussion of 18th–19th century Shoemakers’ Hammers
Via Zoom from our friends in Europe
Carsten Metz, Independent Private Shoemaker (DE) (tentative)
Shoemakers’ Wax – A practical demonstration on preparation
Rebecca Posselt, Proprietor, Shoe & Leather Workshop, Breisgau (DE)
English Lastmaking vs. Traditional German Lastmaking
& Workshop Tour
Dr. Marquita Volken, Senior Curator, Gentle Craft Shoe Museum, Independent Researcher in Archaeology (CH)
16th and 17th century Overshoes, with Background to Ancient Rome
CALL FOR PAPERS AND PRESENTATIONS
Those who wish to present an in-person or virtual illustrated talk (Power Point), pre-recorded video presentation, live presentation workshop, or remote hands-on demonstration are asked to contact Al Saguto
dasaguto@widowmaker.com We look forward to your creative input and to seeing you in October!
HOTEL AND TRAVEL
A block of rooms have been held for the “The Honourable Cordwainers’ Company (The HCC) Annual Meeting” on October 21st - October 24th, 2022. For the group rate please call by September 30th to reserve your room within the block 724-238-9545
$135* + tax – Friday Night
$125* + tax/night – Saturday & Sunday Nights
REGISTRATION: https://thehcc.org/meeting%20notice.pdf Or visit the Our Annual Meeting page at thehcc.org