In Memoriam

[das]

It is with great sadness that we share the news of Nancy Bailey’s passing. Wife of HCC Video Editor John Bailey, Nancy spent many years attending guild meetings and providing kind support of the HCC. She was an active supporter of the arts and heritage in their community in Cape May, New Jersey. More about her life may be found here: https://www.spilkerfuneralhome.com/obit ... !/Obituary We express our profound sadness and support for John.

[homeboy]

Sincere condolences.....

[das]

It is with great personal sense of loss I regret to inform you that the HCC Guild Librarian, Ira Marc Carlson (1962-2022) passed away last Saturday. As a trained anthropologist with a keen devotion to archeology and history, Marc's decades of work with Medieval shoemaking research, and his 'Footwear of the Middle Ages' website, stand as a monument to an avocation few can match. As a fulltime librarian for the University of Tulsa, OK, his many years as the guild's librarian, caretaking our library, catapulted our collection of books and research materials to prominence through his hard work getting it all catalogued and available through inter-library loan request. "Fair winds and following seas..."

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https://www.davisfamilyfuneralhome.com/ ... !/Obituary

[das]

It is with a heavy heart I must report the passing of Eric A. Myall, HCC Charter Member, long-time HCC Board member, co-worker as Harnessmaker & Saddler at Colonial Williamsburg for more than 20 years, and neighbor around the corner.
https://bucktroutfuneralhome.net/obitua ... red-myall/

[das]

D.W. Frommer, February 1, 1946 – January 31, 2023.

We do not have the words to adequately convey our sorrow in sharing the news of D.W. Frommer’s passing.

As a dear friend and long-serving member of the H.C.C. board, D.W. created and served as Webmaster for The Crispin Colloquy. His dedication to the bootmaking and shoemaking trades is legendary, and he touched many lives as a teacher, mentor, and friend.

If you could lock us in a cabin with a pipe, a bottle of whisky, and 3 weeks of time, we might be able to scratch the surface of anecdotes, good times, workbench wisdom and his numerous accomplishments. A veteran of the United States Army (82nd Airborne attached to the 5th Air Calvary in the battle of the Ia Drang Valley), he became an apprentice saddle maker under Colonel Frank Finch and learned bootmaking from Mike Ives in Billings, Montana. An award-winning bootmaker and master of his trade for four decades, D.W. was very proud of his students and his teaching attracted aspiring bootmakers from around the world. He shared his shared his knowledge generously, and his posts here on the forum are representative of his legacy as a teacher and supporter of all those practicing the trade.

D.W. was larger than life in so many ways and will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loving wife Randee and his family, and all those who were touched by his talent and wisdom.

From The Callin’, by D.W. Frommer

… Now quality don’t come in hundreds, it comes in one’s and two’s
To build the best, you use the best, the rest must be refused.
You stand up to your work bench and you ‘open up a vein’,
You build yourself into each pair, that’s why they bear your name.

[homeboy]

Al said it well. The world was a better place while D.W. was here. Dee-Dub......we miss you!

[das]

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One of my favorite shots of D.W. and me.

[das]

Here's a nice interview/article on D.W.'s backstory: https://www.keikari.com/english/intervi ... rommer-ii/ And a good video: https://www.google.com/search?q=D.+W.+F ... VxXSssBZK8

[das]

G'day All. Not sure where to put this as I can't reply on the 'In Memoriam' thread. I'm not here very much at all these days, as I'm burnt out and finished with shoemaking for the time being, so I missed the passing of D.W. Really sorry to hear that. He was keen to teach, and keen to learn (even about some of my weird, of the wall methods ). I learnt a number of things from him, one of the most useful being the trick of offsetting the heel end of a sole about 1/2" to the lateral side so that when it's forced over to line up with the heel, it drops down into the lateral side of the shank, leaving a bulge above the medial side of the shank that can then be smacked down with a dome faced hammer and then burnished down with a bone, thus making it fairly easy work getting a thick leather sole to mould around a deep shank. See drawings (in 'Shoemaking Ancestors') to clarify.
D.W. also passed onto all of us the advice he'd received from his master:
"When you finish a pair of shoes/boots, find three things you can improve next time.
Not more than three, so you won't become discouraged
Not less than three, so you won't become arrogant" (can't quite remember the exact word he used here, but that general gist of not getting too proud etc)
A good thing to remember in any trade.
Vale D.W.
Thank you, and you will be missed.
Duncan MacHarg

[das]

William (Billy) McMillen, age 81 of Glenmont New York passed away quietly at home on November 9th, 2022. Billy was born on Staten Island and lived there for his entire life until he retired and moved to Glenmont in 2003.

Anyone who met Billy even briefly knew what a savant he was. A master, truly, of many trades, he could grain paint a box, deftly use a molding plane he restored, and design a timber frame dwelling. But as a tinsmith, he was in a league of his own and the maker of the most intricate tin items. He helped train many tinsmiths across the country, and his knowledge was critical to the establishment of the thriving tin shop at Colonial Williamsburg, where he donated many of the tools used in the shop.

Billy had a long career in restoration. He was director of the restoration department at Staten Island’s Historic Richmond Town, a site his father helped to found. He helped Don Carpentier move and restore many of the buildings at New York’s Eastfield Village beginning in the 1970s. In fact, he was still helping to restore Eastfield’s buildings the week before he died. Over the years, he also acquired an exemplary, tasteful collection of American material culture, tools, and firearms.

With his polymath abilities also came a generous, fun-loving personality. He was an ace at dominoes, made great rum punch, and could entertain with his stories for hours. He was a friend to all and always gave others his time, talent, and treasures.

Billy and his wife, Judy, who passed away last year, were energetic supporters and generous donors of the Early American Industries Association for decades. Judy was EAIA’s first woman President—a fact of which Billy was very proud. They were both long time members of the Brigade of the American Revolution. Billy was a charter member of the HCC, and an enthusiastic supporter at the guild's founding and incorporation.

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