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Just Around The Corner Discovering Middlebury's Treasures

photo by provided

photo by provided Around every corner Middlebury has something unique to offer.

Tuesday July 25, 2017

By Cookie Steponaitis

While summer construction has turned downtown Middlebury into a look reminiscent of Church Street in Burlington with vehicles having limited access, foot traffic is flourishing. Walking the streets of Middlebury and gazing into the windows of shops and stores is magical and addictive. Behind each door is a collection of wonderful items, some traditional, some unique and some even fanciful but all created with skill and determination. Add to that each store has a story and the day can be easily spent walking, exploring and finding the treasures that are Middlebury's best known and even some of its best kept secrets.
    Taking a turn onto Park Street you will find one of those intriguing store fronts that belong to Dan Freeman's Leatherworks that combines the presence of products of today and techniques of the past. Wooden shoe forms hang above and in the midst of the store is the heart of business, Dan Freeman himself.  An artisan and artist, Dan's passion for making shoes and working with leather has been going on since 1970. After leaving the Army, Dan found the blend of skill, eye for detail and passion for this unique career and has never looked back. Moving to Vermont with his wife Susan, the couple found their place in the Middlebury community and has been here ever since. “I am a flat-lander,” joked Dan. “And I am holding on to that title but Vermont is my home.”
    When asked if he started out young dreaming of a career involving this trade Freeman grinned. “It was model airplanes,” explained Freeman. “I was not the athlete and not the book scholar, but I had an ability to create with my hands and the more intricate or labor intensive the model the better.” Freeman went on to share that most Voice readers would be very surprised to learn just how labor intensive it is to make shoes. Since his shoes are custom made and require immense amounts of time to complete, Freeman does not sell to the open market. In his store/studio Freeman does create and sells custom leather belts that he makes when not working on the custom ordered shoes.
    “There are basically four specialties of shoe making in the world today,” explained Freeman. “There are orthodontics, cowboy boots and reenactors who are seeking period shoes and boots.” Custom shoe makers like Freeman are perhaps the smallest part of the trade and with mass production of shoes overseas; the trade is not growing and is shrinking in numbers. Freeman shared the history of shoe making that before the Industrial Revolution shoes were made one at a time and were often passed down in wills or left to relatives. A form or lasts was carved by hand and the shoe made around the form. Since it took so long to make there were no right or left shoes. You simply made one straight lasts and made the shoes from there. It certainly was not about comfort or style. This was common practice until around the 1850's. Dan Freeman went on to explain how high heels and fashion changed the process and how his making of sandals and custom shoes fit into the process.
    Dan Freeman's Leatherworks is open Tuesday-Friday 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. and Saturday, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. A stop at 2 Park Street is more than just looking at a business. It is opening a doorway into the world of a skill set that is ancient and modern, old and new and unique because Dan Freeman represents all phases of creation and construction. His shop is where it all starts and ends. One of many treasures just around the corner of Middlebury's streets, Dan Freeman's Leatherworks is for the curious and those looking to see and purchase leather products that come directly from the artisan/artist.

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