Soldier’s Boots Research

WW1 Boots (https://wolfandiron.com/walking-mile-soldiers-boots-brief-history-trench-boots-wwi/):

• trench foot was a huge problem for soldiers during the First World War
• trench foot=necrosis of the foot which is caused by “prolonged exposure to moisture and cramped conditions” aka basically their foot were rotting
• the official shoe for soldiers was changed by General John Pershing in 1918 (a year after America joined the war)
• the new shoe had thicker leather to prevent water getting into the shoes and so in the hopes of preventing trench foot
• to further prevent trench foot soldiers had to check each other’s feet everyday and they had to rub their feet with whale oil

Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trench_boot):

• the shoe previous to the trench boot was the Russet Marching Shoe
• the new model of boot was referred to as “Little Tanks” by soldiers as they were bigger than the previously provided shoe

(http://www.sofmilitary.co.uk/british-ww1-b5-boots-brown-ankle-boot-product,12445)