People's sentimental shoe memories celebrated

People's sentimental footwear, including wedding shoes and a special retirement present, is being celebrated in a new exhibition.

Somerset's Shoemakers Museum in Street is marking its first anniversary by exhibiting footwear from local people that hold a unique memory.

They have chosen 12 shoes from the community, marking the 12 months that the museum has been open.

Liz Fox, who helped organise the exhibition, said: "They're all shoes that evoke memories and have a close sentimental connection with times that have passed."

Fox contributed her white Dr Martens wedding boots that are embossed with a nature theme.

"We got married on a farm out near Petherton. We arrived by tractor. I had a very traditional wedding dress but with these boots tucked under," Fox said.

"Unfortunately it didn't last; we were married 10 years - but the shoes did last."

The museum opened in September 2025 and showcases 200 years of Clarks' shoemaking history.

The exhibition, which is running until 6 September, also includes the brand's famous Desert Boot that was presented to Pat Snee with his face on when he retired from Clarks after 50 years.

"They are significant because they were being built long before I was even born," Snee said.

Snee started working for Clarks in 1969 in Radstock, when he was 15 years old and fresh out of school.

"I worked my way up right into the company. I came off the shop floor into management in the 80s," Snee said.

Snee said his main memory of his time with Clarks was when he was asked to turn the Christmas lights on.

"That year, the CEO said he wanted me to turn the lights on because I was the longest-serving employee," Snee said.

"For many years I worked with Clarks, I've always been asked to turn the lights off as I go out and this is the first time I've ever been asked to turn the lights on."

Rosie Martin, director at the Shoemakers Museum, contributed two of her family's shoes to the exhibition.

One of them is a black Italian men's shoe, belonging to her husband.

"He got it at the exact moment [when] the Italian Lira changed to the Euro and he thought he found a very cheap Italian shoe in Lira but it turned out it was actually very expensive," Martin said.

Martin and her husband married in 2004 and he wore the shoes to the wedding.

"He decided to pass them on to our son who is 19 now and going off to university," Martin added.

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