Shoe Last

Shoe lasts are used in the manufacture and repair of shoes and serves as a mold for the work done both on the sole and the upper. Prior to mass manufacturing, business owners bought raw materials for shoes. Processed materials went to women in homes, who bound the shoe’s “uppers,” then to backyard shops (called “ten-footers”), where men “bottomed” them with soles. Finished shoes went back to the owners for shipping to merchants.