Monkey boots are a specific style of lace-to-toe boot that became popular among mod and skinhead subcultures in the United Kingdom[1][2] and American workers.[3]
Variations of monkey boots exist across the world. The two most popular and well-known variations are the style of monkey boot popular in the United Kingdom in the 60's and 70's,[4] and the style of monkey boot designed by workwear companies in the US such as Endicott-Johnson,[5] Red Wing,[6] and Thorogood.[7]
The monkey boots popular in the UK are known for their unique "tractor-tread" outsoles, yellow laces, and typically brown, black, or oxblood leather,[8] while the monkey boots produced by American work boot companies are known for their distinctive lace-to-toe construction designed for a more secure fit.[9][10]
Origins
The exact origins of the monkey boot are unknown, but some of the earliest iterations are from Czechoslovakia during the 1940s and 50s.[2][11]
Postwar, monkey boots were exported to different parts of Europe, where they became especially popular in the UK during the 60's and 70's.[12][13]
Subcultural significance in the UK
In the 1960s and 70s, monkey boots became popular in the UK among skinhead and mod subcultures. Monkey boots were often thought to be cheaper than Doc Martens, another popular boot within similar subcultures, and were worn as a fashion statement against conformity by mods and skinheads alike. Many mods and skinheads considered monkey boots to be a part of their fashion uniform, and wore them with pride.[14][1] As the two subcultures gained mainstream attention, music groups such as The Who wore monkey boots to signify their allegiance with their respective subculture.[15]
While they were still worn in the 80's and 90's,[16][17] as the mod and skinhead subcultures shifted and faded, monkey boots became less popular, though they are still sold and worn today throughout the UK.[8][18]
Perceptions based on gender and age
In the UK monkey boots were sometimes seen by mods and skinheads as shoes worn by women and children.[19] While female skinheads and mods tended to wear more androgynous clothing, including boots, monkey boots became associated with women in certain mod and skinhead groups.[13] Girls and women continued to wear monkey boots to signify their belonging to the mod and skinhead subcultures.[12][20]
American work boot style
In America another style of monkey boot was developed. In the 1940s, Red Wing, a popular work boot company, developed their work boot Style 2996–the Lineman. The boot, with its lace-to-toe design, was constructed for workers climbing electrical poles, so that they were more secure and stable.[6]
In the 1950s Throrogood, an offshoot of the Weinbrenner Shoe Company, produced style No. 633, another lace-to-toe work boot. Known as a roofer boot or bruiser, Thorogood constructed style No. 633 boots for roofers, carpenters, and other workers who benefited from the security of the lace-to-toe design.[7][10] Sears and Endicott-Johnson also produced their own lace-to-toe worker boots in the 1940s and through the 1960s.[21][22]
While none of the US work boots at the time they were made were called monkey boots, the name has since become attached to the specific lace-to-toe style.[23]
Modern day
Both variations of monkey boot are worn today, whether by modern mods and skinheads, workers, or workwear fashion enthusiasts.[24]
References
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