What’s a Wellie?
I wonder if Arthur Wellesly, the 1st Duke of Wellington, would be shocked or amused to know he started a trend that has had global reaches, inspired songs, T.V. shows, and was even used by slave labor to communicate with each other. The first “Wellington Boot” was a modification of a Hessian boot and was made of leather. They became very popular with Cavalry riders for their versatility to go from battle fields to in-town for evenings. It didn’t take long to be scooped up by the fashion industry as men wanted to emulate the war heroes.
In 1852 Hiram Hutchinson and Charles Goodyear invented the vulcanization for rubber. Goodyear used this process to make tires and Hutchinson to make footwear. The market for rubber boots skyrocketed and by the time of World War One they were the go to boot for the army. The British army alone purchased nearly 1.2 million pairs. By the end of World War 2; men, women, and children were wearing them. They quickly became a necessity in areas with long stretches of wet weather, in industry, in mining, on farms, for fisherman, and on and on. While the traditional boots were green or black, now a days the rubber boots come in innumerable patterns and flowers and in every color of the rainbow. Some of the nick names are “Wellies”, “Gummies”, “Gum Boots”, “Gumbies”, “Rain Boots”, Rubber Boots”, “Billy Boots”, “Top Boots”, “Water Boots” and the list goes on.
So how does this belong in a Knitting Blog? All these boots need socks and liners and cuffs. My love of rubber boots is wound up in what I love to do in them which is spend time in the barn with my horses. I have always used them as a utilitarian necessity so the popularity of rubber boots as a fashion statement became rather amusing. As such, I designed a collection of 14 knitting patterns that can each be knit as boot socks, liners, and cuffs in the book “Wellie Toppers” as a fun expression of the place these boots have in our lives and hearts. Check it out!
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