This month, November, gives us a time to reflect on our past and give thanks for things, materials, like leather, people and history that has gotten us to this point. We also get a chance to thank our veterans, both in service, retired and those who have perished.
Reflecting back and remembering the history of both our lives and our nation’s, we see that leather is used in a variety of ways. Leather is even used earlier than we can remember, even before the birth of our nation.
Ancient Times
Leather craft has been a vital resource for a long time. Especially in agriculture, industry, commerce and domestic life. All the way back to ancient times!
Ancient Egyptians would use leather to assist them with building and crafting their chariots. They used leather to make shoes and wrist protectors for war. It is believed that the Roman’s probably started vegetable tanning, therefore the belief is that the Egyptians used oil curing.
Being that the Roman’s perfected the art of boiling the leather, they too, made a lot of use out of leather. They were able to strengthen their armor, giving them an advantage against their opponents in war.
While the uses of leather in ancient times may seem primitive, we use the basis of these methods and technologies to continue to make leather stronger and more useful.
World War II Era
As we progress quite a ways forward, we can look at the uses and helpfulness leather brought to our soldiers during the World War II era.
Soldiers were fighting in terrible circumstances, most of the time. Most of the uniforms worn by them consisted of some leather craft, whether it be their shoes, coats, belts or other armor tools. All of these tools and uniform pieces were durable, though, making it easier to fight and stay focused on the war. They didn’t have to worry about their feet getting cold and had a nice leather jacket to throw on when they caught a shiver.
Even back on the homefront, people were utilizing leather for a variety of things. Making shoes, for both soldiers and civilians, and coats. In fact, there was even a ration on shoes since leather and rubber were in short supply. It was necessary to ration it to make sure there was enough for the military when they needed it.
Leather was seen all around during this era, both at war and at home.
Modern Times
In today’s military, leather is used for a few different things, but most notably for their boots. Combat boots, as they are commonly known, are the boots that military members wear to round out their official uniform.
While the military has used leather to make shoes and boots for a long time, the combat boot model is the one that continues to lead the path. The boot is made of leather almost entirely. Leaving rubber for the soles and weaved fabric for the laces.
These leather boots provide the soldiers with a solid foundation with each step. They also provide protection from a variety of environmental factors like heat, mud, snow and more. It also gives them protection from tough terrains, but gives them flexibility to move quickly. All because of the leather!
The military mostly uses leather to craft the combat boots for soldiers, but it is still a vital material for them and continues to be.
Other Uses
As we all know, leather has many uses and can be crafted to make an array of accessories and other clothing items. It’s evident that the military has and continues to use leather for these purposes. As do many civilians.
Non-military members use leather for everyday accessories such as belts, coats, briefcases, notepad covers and more. With the versatility of leather, we can see that it is used for a variety of purposes.
In the end, leather, whether used by military or civilians, is a very durable and useful material. We can thank people from early ages for developing methods and technologies to utilize the leather material in a variety of ways. After all, it seems safe to say that if the military uses leather, both in early days and now, it must be a quality, durable material. And that’s why Texas Saddlery will continue to build and craft belts and other accessories from high-quality leather!