Jack, Last
- Object Name:
- Jack, Last
- Object ID:
- 1977.055.01.004
- Date:
- 1888-1914
- Description:
- Last jack. Cast iron. Round, flat plate with notch in edge due to breakage. Rectangular slit in center with 2" diameter projection around slit underneath plate. On one side of slit are two raised parallel bars that run from the slit to the edge. The bars are upside down L-shaped and form a groove that allows the mounted toe-end of a shoe last with a concave surface to slide from the edge toward the middle of the plate. The shoe last is covered in hand-stitched leather. On the opposite side of the slit are two vertical bars with a horizontal rod that holds an iron last peg and allows it to rotate. The peg has 7 or 8 perpendicular incised lines on it. The peg is the vertical part of an L-shaped bar that extends over the center slit. The end of the bar has a hole where another rod passes through. The rod is wide and flat on top so it cannot pass all the way through the L-shaped bar. Its other end is formed into an oblong opening to accommodate a strap. This device was found on shoemaker's bench 1977.55.1.1 with a strap that attached to a foot pedal.
- Material:
- Metal
Leather
Iron - Dimensions:
- H-5.75 Dia-7.5 inches
- Provenance:
- Acquired in the vicinity of Durham, NH, by the collector James Cowan Sawyer (1872-1944).
A shoe sole pattern (1977.55.1.96) bears the names Wiggin & Newhall who are listed in the 1895 Dover City Directory as boot and shoemakers. They were successors to Smith & Wiggin (1892-93 Dover City Directory), who were in turn successors of Walton R. Shaw (1890-91 and 1892-93 Dover City Directories). Wiggin was later in partnership with Dudley L. Furber who made shoes until 1914. Several shoe sole patterns (1977.55.1.95-.98) bear the initials H.G., possibly referring to Henry Glidden of Glidden and Bennett, boot and shoe manufacturers listed in the Dover City directories for 1888-1893. - Credit Line:
- James Cowan Sawyer Collection, Gift of George F. Sawyer and Charles H. Sawyer
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