Museum L-A Maine seeking shoes from community for exhibit

LEWISTON — This fall, Museum L-A will be celebrating all things shoes with its newest main gallery exhibit.
The history of shoe making in our local area of Lewiston-Auburn will be explored, marking the highlights of the industry over the past 150 years, and visitors will be able to enjoy the fashion and aesthetic trends of shoes over the years.

Visitors will learn a little bit about how shoes are made as well as the meanings behind the language of the shoe industry. In order to tell those stories to the fullest, the museum needs the community’s help.
At the height of the industry, millions of shoes were made in Lewiston-Auburn, and the museum is inviting community members to donate shoes that may be good representatives of the numerous shoe shops and factories that were making them.
In particular, the museum would like shoes that have a direct connection to a factory or shoe shop in the local area or have a personal significance attached to them. Perhaps you or a relative worked in a shoe shop and made that particular pair of shoes by hand… Or maybe you knew the person who designed a whole new style of shoe, such as the early 20th century casual and athletic shoes made famous by Auburn factories.
“Through these donations, we hope to bring a personal and local voice to the exhibit and celebrate not only the industry but also the craftsmanship, beauty and aesthetics of the products locally produced,” said Emma Sieh, collections & exhibit coordinator.
Museum L-A will be accepting shoe donations and/or loans from now until Aug. 25. The museum plans to incorporate them into the design of the exhibit that will be on view until the end of May. If you are interested in donating or loaning your shoes, please visit the museum during our open hours (Tuesday through Friday between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
If those hours are not convenient or for questions regarding the donation, contact Sieh at 207-333-3881 or esieh@museumla.org.
Museum L-A is located in the Bates Mill Complex at 35 Canal St.
For more information, contact info@museumla.org or call 207-333-3881.