Alden for L.L. Bean?

[VMan]

Recently I aquired a pair of L.L. Bean casual blutchers, in a very cool mossy brown color.

They are sized 12 C/A, and I had only seen the dual widths (heel and sole) on USA-made shoes from Alden before. They look to be well-made shoes.

Did Alden make shoes for L.L. Bean in the past?

I will probably be flipping these on the forum or on Ebay, as they are a bit too large for me.

 

[AlanC]

I have seen dual widths from both Johnston & Murphy and Nettleton in USA made shoes, although I believe J&M usually reversed their widths with the heel width coming second.

Post some pics if you can. They sound interesting. And you might be able to flip those in the Trad thrift exchange.

 

[VMan]

Alan,

The shoes I have are identical to this pair on ebay, except the color is different:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-LL-L-L-B...em170062905196

 

[AlanC]

Honestly, I'd be surprised if they were made by Alden. The ones you link state they are a "narrow" width rather than lettered widths like the ones you found. Perhaps a picture of the interior stamping might help the Alden experts out there. I'd say somebody like Tom from Leather Soul Hawaii could give you a pretty definitive opinion.

 

[VMan]

Here's two pics:

 

[c55]

Back in the day both of these manufacturers made product up in Maine, it is def. possible that a relationship was formed and they private labeled shoes. $41 for those isn't bad considering they are basically new.