The Wellington boot has a history steeped in the aristocratic traditions of England and was conceptualized by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, in the early 1800s. A successor to the popular leather Hessian boot being worn at the time, the wellington was conceived by the Duke as a "form follows function" update. With the criteria that the new boot fit closer to the leg, be sturdy and battle ready, and have the versatility to transition into evening wear, Wellesley put the task to his cobbler Hoby, a fixture on London's St. James Street. The resultant creation, dubbed the Wellington in the Duke's honor, began an enduring trend in leather footwear. Ever ready to emulate a celebrated hero, patriotic Brits took to the new style in droves and it remained a fashion staple well into the late 1800s.
Hessian Boot
Wellington (leather) Boot
While footwear traditions were forging ahead in England, across the Atlantic, entrepreneurial Americans were seeking new materials to work with as an option to leather. In 1852 Charles Goodyear had perfected his process for making vulcanized rubber, a versatile material suitable for many uses, including footwear. Shoemakers of the day didn't miss a beat and began to use vulcanized rubber in earnest realizing its benefits almost immediately - ease of use, durability, and most notably, its waterproofness. Among those to realize the potential of vulcanized rubber footwear was Henry Lee Norris.
In 1856 Mr. Norris set off for Scotland in search of a suitable location to establish a factory for the making of his "light bulb" idea - rubber wellingtons. Norris found a suitable location in the old Castle Silk Mills in Edinburgh, Scotland and immediately set to task. He brought over four cobblers from America familiar with vulcanized rubber, incorporated under the name North British Rubber Company and began manufacturing rubber wellingtons. By 1875 Norris had 600 people under his employ and was rapidly expanding into other areas of manufacture utilizing vulcanized rubber including tires, water bottles, conveyor belts and golf balls. During World War I the company produced over one million pairs for troops fighting in the flooded trenches of Northern Europe. The Second World War saw the increased production of not only wellingtons, but gas masks and other equipment as well, with 80% of production going to support the war effort. In 1955, the now classic Green Hunter and Royal Hunter were introduced, both styles continuing in production today.
Castle Silk Mills
North British Rubber Co. advert
Eventually rebranding the rubber wellington division as Hunter Boots, the North British Rubber Company established an iconic footwear collection worn everywhere; on the feet of Royals at Buckingham Palace to workers on the factory floor, from huntsmen on the Scottish Highlands to fashionistas in the streets of New York City. Timeless in their style and adept at their task, Hunter wellingtons will continue in their rich heritage for years to come.
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