1940s C.H. Hyer & Sons Cowboy Boots • Black & Brown Two-Tone • Women’s Size 8.5 M
1940s C.H. Hyer & Sons Cowboy Boots — Black & Brown Two-Tone — Women’s Size 8.5 M
The Boots
These are a magnificent pair of 1940s-era cowboy boots handcrafted by C.H. Hyer and Sons of Olathe, Kansas — the company widely credited with inventing the American cowboy boot in 1875. Built during the height of the company’s production prowess, these boots represent a period when Hyer was simultaneously outfitting Hollywood cowboys, military officers, and everyday ranch women with the finest handmade footwear in the country.
The boots feature a striking two-tone colorway: the vamp and lower foot area are finished in a deep, lustrous black leather, while the upper shaft transitions into a rich chocolate brown. The two colors blend together at the midpoint rather than meeting at a hard line, creating a dramatic ombre effect that deepens with age and wear. This two-tone construction was a hallmark of Hyer’s 1940s production — a period when the company’s craftsmen were experimenting with color combinations that went beyond the single-tone boots of earlier decades.
The shaft displays elegant white contrast stitching in a flowing, scrollwork pattern — large, sweeping S-curves and flourishes that are characteristic of the 1940s aesthetic. This is not the tight, geometric stitching of later decades; it is loose, organic, and confident, executed with the kind of freehand artistry that only skilled operators on industrial Singer machines could achieve. The pattern adorns both the front and back panels of each boot, giving them a full 360-degree presentation. The brown leather pull straps at the top are sturdy and functional, showing the grain and patina of eight decades of handling.
The toe profile is a classic rounded point — not the sharp needle toe of later eras, but the practical, slightly blunted shape that working women of the 1940s preferred. This was a boot meant to be worn in stirrups, on ranch ground, and on dance floors alike. The heel is a traditional underslung riding heel, worn down with decades of honest use but still structurally sound. The soles have been resoled with rubber half-soles — a common and period-appropriate repair that speaks to how valued these boots were to their original owner. The Goodyear welt stitching (visible as the white thread line at the sole edge) remains intact and tight.
The interior is fully lined in natural tan leather — a luxury that distinguished Hyer from lesser makers. Inside the pull strap, the original woven Hyer label survives, though heavily worn and partially deteriorated after approximately 80 years. The gold and green fabric label — reading “Quality Boots” and bearing the Hyer name — is a telltale identifier of the company’s 1940s production era, when these cloth labels replaced earlier stamped markings.
Historical Context
When these boots were crafted in the 1940s, the Hyer Boot Company was being operated by the sons and grandsons of founder Charles H. Hyer, who had passed away in 1921. The company was at the peak of its national reputation. During both World Wars, Hyer supplied quality riding boots to military officers stationed at Fort Leavenworth and Camp Funston, and the factory’s skilled workforce — many of them immigrant craftsmen from Germany, Sweden, and Poland, along with graduates of the Kansas State School for the Deaf — were producing boots that were shipped by mail order to customers across the United States and around the world.
This was also the golden age of the singing cowboy in Hollywood. Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Tom Mix all wore Hyer boots on screen, and the company’s client list read like a who’s-who of American celebrity and political power — from Buffalo Bill Cody and Will Rogers to Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Calvin Coolidge. A woman wearing Hyer boots in the 1940s was wearing the same brand as the biggest names in the West, crafted by the same hands in the same Olathe factory.
These boots have survived approximately eight decades in wearable condition — a testament to the quality of Hyer’s materials and construction. The leather remains supple and intact, the stitching holds firm, and the structure stands upright without support. They are a genuine artifact of America’s most storied boot company during its finest era.
