Dacks and other Canadian shoe brands

[HalfHuskyBite]

I’m going to enter the shoe restoration contest with these. They feel like corrected grain leather.

 

[suitforcourt]

I’m going to enter the shoe restoration contest with these. They feel like corrected grain leather.

Tight schedule. Deadline is this Thursday!

 

[lbgradwell]

Jiqea's thrifted Dack's 2165A Brown Plain-Toe Derby in Prairie Oxhide with Hand-Sewn Vamps arrived today. Ordered Thursday afternoon from Ottawa and delivered to Newfoundland the following Wednesday with a long weekend in between. Impressive!

 

[Jiqea]

Here are a nice pair of Canadian made Florsheim that arrived yesterday. They were made at the old McHale factory in London. They have my favourite date code, and I am thinking they were made in 89 rather than 79, although I can get no firm date on when the factory in London shut down. They were sold, or were dead stock from Woodwards, a western Canadian department chain that shut down in 1993. Great shoes. I love finding them with the box! I am torn between giving these or the NOS camels to my son. He is not getting both!

 

[suitforcourt]

Here are a nice pair of Canadian made Florsheim that arrived yesterday. They were made at the old McHale factory in London. They have my favourite date code, and I am thinking they were made in 89 rather than 79, although I can get no firm date on when the factory in London shut down. They were sold, or were dead stock from Woodwards, a western Canadian department chain that shut down in 1993. Great shoes. I love finding them with the box! I am torn between giving these or the NOS camels to my son. He is not getting both! View attachment 1235534 View attachment 1235535 View attachment 1235537 View attachment 1235536 View attachment 1235538

Another amazing pair of Canadiana!

Sad that we only have memories of what was a stellar and robust industry.

 

[lbgradwell]

I am torn between giving these or the NOS camels to my son. He is not getting both!

He's lucky he's getting either!
(I'm available for adoption.)

 

[suitforcourt]

He's lucky he's getting either!
(I'm available for adoption.)

As am I!!!

 

[Jiqea]

I was cruising around on the internet this afternoon and came across these Canada West boots, manufactured several years ago for Epaulet New York (oddly based out of California). They were marketed as "Bull Leather". Nice to see there are still quality products being made in Canada. These are on eBay. If they were my size I might have bought them. Fall boot season is nearly here!

 

[suitforcourt]

I was cruising around on the internet this afternoon and came across these Canada West boots, manufactured several years ago for Epaulet New York (oddly based out of California). They were marketed as "Bull Leather". Nice to see there are still quality products being made in Canada. These are on eBay. If they were my size I might have bought them. Fall boot season is nearly here! View attachment 1237503 View attachment 1237504 View attachment 1237505 View attachment 1237506

This store sells Canada West boots (casual, work etc):

Men`s Casual - Leather King & KingsPowerSports

leatherking.ca

 

[lbgradwell]

Those Epaulet boots have been on eBay for quite some time now - certainly many months. I like them!

 

[mariusscott]

canadawest boots proudly made in Winnipeg, I recall seeing a dated manufacturing video in a productions class and they have an outlet in Winnipeg but its a bit out of the way

 

[Jiqea]

I have been searching a long time for pictures of a pair of truly early Dacks, and tonight I found them! I believe these shoes to pre-date 1923, which was when Dacks opened their Montreal and Winnipeg stores, and stopped using "Dacks Toronto" in their advertising. Just such a super cool thing. The vendor wants a fortune and I just cant justify buying them. Damn I want them. They are a real piece of Canadian shoe history, and I bet there are not many left in existence. My wife would strangle me. That black diamond "Made by Dacks Toronto" makes my knees weak.

 

[lbgradwell]

So very cool. It's amazing to me to realize that shoe would not look in the least out of place were it in production right now. Timeless.

 

[Jiqea]

I broke down and bought the two nice pairs of Dacks Bond Streets I had posted on two weeks ago. I made a low ball offer that was surprisingly accepted. They arrived last evening. Dacks first produced the Bond Street in 1928, and which point it was the name for a single shoe model. By 1932, and the height of the depression, Dacks introduced an entire line of Bond Street shoes, geared towards younger men at a lower price point than their traditional lines. In order to keep prices down they used Canadian sourced leather rather than imported French leather. The Bond Street line continued to be produced with Canadian leather until the Second World War, when it seems to have been discontinued.

By the early 1950's, and after the sale of the company by S.E. Dack (my avatar) to the Marston Corporation in 1948, the Bond Street line was reintroduced as an entry level offering, however the shoes were sourced from Churchs and were all manufactured in England. Later the shoes would be made by Cheaney after they had been purchased by Churchs. The two pairs pictured below are the earliest of these English made Bond Streets that I have found, and with their nailed heels and superb construction, I believe them to be from the 50's. The one pair came with their original shoe trees which are definitely from the 50's. The leather appears to possibly be water bison, although it is not indicated in the shoes. They retailed in the 50's for $17.50.

 

[suitforcourt]

I broke down and bought two nice pairs of Dacks Bond Streets I had posted on two weeks ago. I made a low ball offer that was surprisingly accepted. They arrive last evening. Dacks first produced the Bond Street in 1928, and which point it was the name for a single shoe model. By 1932, and the height of the depression, Dacks introduced an entire line of Bond Street shoes, geared towards younger men at a lower price point than their traditional lines. In order to keep prices down they used Canadian sourced leather rather than imported French leather. The Bond Street line continued to be produced with Canadian leather until the Second World War, when it seems to have been discontinued.

By the early 1950's, and after the sale of the company by S.E. Dack (my avatar) to the Marston Corporation in 1948, the Bond Street line was reintroduced as an entry level offering, however the shoes were sourced from Churchs and were all manufactured in England. Later the shoes would be made by Cheaney after they had been purchased by Churchs. The two pairs pictured below are the earliest of these English made Bond Streets that I have found, and with their nailed heels and superb construction, I believe them to be from the 50's. The one pair came with their original shoe trees which are definitely from the 50's. The leather appears to possibly be water bison, although it is not indicated in the shoes. They retailed in the 50's for $17.50. View attachment 1239375 View attachment 1239376 View attachment 1239374
View attachment 1239379 View attachment 1239380
View attachment 1239393

Thanks for the history lesson. I am a history geek and nerd.