By Danielle Krebsbach, Intern

Trench boots were produced during WWI and were made for trench warfare. The rows of hobnails on the bottom of the shoe were designed to help soldiers grip the ground of the muddy trenches, though they did little to help stabilize soldiers outside of the trenches. The Pershing boot, a type of trench boot, was developed to improve on the existing trench boots which easily ripped at the back seam and were not water-proof. Water and mud sinking into the boot and keeping feet wet was one of the main contributors to trench foot during WWI. The Pershing boot was water-proof, was reinforced on the back seam, with thicker soles, and a metal rivet on either side of the boot to help further reinforce the boot. This improvement in army footwear was short lived as development of the Pershing boot started in 1918, they were used between August and November 1918, their production for army use stopped at the end of WWI.

This particular pair of Pershing boots was donated to the La Crosse Historical Society by Howard W. Theil.