Edwardian Style WOOD SHOE LASTS Salesman Sample Circa 1900 - 1920

A pair of KRENTLER BROTHERS WOOD SHOE LASTS designed for a pointed heeled shoe or boot.  

The pair are most likely salesman or patent samples as they are quite small measuring only 5 ½” long and 1 ¼” wide at the heel.  Based on the pointed toe, they may be from the early 1900 - 1920s, when the Edwardian style pointed toe with a medium heel was still popular.

The top of the pair of KRENTLER BROTHERS WOOD SHOE LASTS are incised with a size, 4 ½ A (note: a 4 ½ shoe size would be over 8” long).  The medial side or the inside of the foot side is stamped, KRENTLER BROS. St. Louis 11 48 and the lateral side or outside of the foot side is stamped 593-N with a larger A.  The thimble or socket is lined with metal.

In great vintage condition, the pair is held together by a piece of old twine.

About Krentler Brothers:  Krentler Brothers was founded in Detroit in1886 by brothers, George and Edwin Krentler.  The firm manufactured and held multiple patents for shoe lasts, boot-trees, crimps and clamps.  The brothers grew the firm quickly and by the early 1900s had ownership in several affiliated companies, including Krentler-Arnold Hinge and the Saint Louis Last Company.  In 1913, the firm was a defendant in a multi-defendant anti-trust case filed by the federal government, stating the Krentler was restraining trade and commerce of shoe and boot lasts.