Sweet Acme Cowgirl Boots

Here's a fine, and very rare, pair of PeeWee style Cowgirl Boots made in the early 1940s for the Acme Boot Company. These beauties were prototypes, the 1930s design "borrowed" by Mr. Cohen, they were handmade to spec in limited quantities, probably by Tony Lama. It was not uncommon for Lama and Lucchesse to produce small custom runs of Acme Boots. These boots were used as salemen's samples and shown at rodeos, stock shows and trade shows. This way orders could be taken while the Acme factory tooled up and produced a more often than not lesser quality boot of the same design on their assembly line.

To the best of my knowledge, Acme never rolled out this design. WWII, and the shortage of leather, probably had a lot to do with the decision not to tool up the Acme factory in Lebanon, Tennessee and produce this design on their assembly line.
These cowgirl boots were worn a time or two, rodeos and trade shows most likely. They have no style or sizing codes and they have plain white canvas pulls. The only way you can be sure they're Acme Boots is to look at the sole... the Acme logo is burned into the leather.

Photography: J. Davis