The Ballogie souter’s (shoemaker’s) workshop is a hidden treasure in rural Aberdeenshire. The building, comprising of a workshop and shop was built in 1896, by the Ballogie Estate. An advert was placed in the paper for a souter or shoemaker. James Merchant a fully trained shoemaker answered and was appointed. He lived at the croft house next door with his wife, two daughters and son.
Like many people in rural areas, James supplemented his souter’s income with agricultural work, working on his croft and as a beekeeper, selling the honey for additional income. He made and sold shoes through a period of huge social change, from 1896 through the first world war and into the second. He would have witnessed shoes becoming made commercially and brand name shoeboxes started to appear in his shop. James died in 1941.
End of an era
After his death, the business continued briefly but by about 1950 the door on the workshop was closed and the shoemaking stopped. The Merchant family continued to live next door until the death of his last surviving daughter in 1999. It was at this point that family members, who came for the funeral, discovered the still fully intact workshop and shop and realised the importance of their discovery. They gifted the building to the Birse Community Trust (BCT) to care for on behalf of the community.
Preserving the historic buildings
The wooden building containing the workshop and shop is now ‘A-listed’, recognising the uniqueness of this the last remaining in-situ souter’s workshop in Scotland, and probably the UK. It is still as the Souter left it when he last walked out; full of tools, machinery, shoes, shoeboxes and scraps of leather on the floor around his bench.
In 2020, during the pandemic, BCT trustees realised that the outer wooden shell of the building was starting to deteriorate. The outer façade was full of holes, riddled with pest infestation and rot. It was feared that as it deteriorated the collection inside would also start to decline. BCT therefore started to raise funds to repair the building and conserve the collection of artefacts inside and preserve it for generations to come.
Funds raised
We are now at the stage where we have raised enough funding to start work on conserving this special place. Thanks to generous funding from many donors, including the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic Environment Scotland, The Garfield Weston Foundation, Museums Galleries Scotland, Aberdeenshire Council, The Strathmartine Trust, The Pilgrim Trust, and The Architectural Heritage Fund.
We have also been delighted to receive numerous generous donations of money from individuals, visitors and small donors, all invaluable in helping us to reach our target.
Work about to commence
This is the exciting stage! Before repair work can start on the building, we need to empty out the unique collection of a rural shoemaker’s livelihood. AOC Archaeology Conservators have been training our heritage volunteers to first make an inventory of all the artefacts in the building and map their locations. Once this was completed, the volunteers were trained in wrapping and packing techniques so they can start the massive task of removing every object to a safe place where it can be conserved and stored during the repairs.
There are over 800 items: shoes, shoeboxes, tools and machinery, sewing machines, leather scraps as well as more personal items including shoe lasts shaped to match customers feet as they age, scraps of handwriting, the seat where the souter sat. There is also the bench where the old ‘mannies’ used to sit and gossip with him as he worked.
Progress to date
So far, the volunteers have worked through one of the hardest winters we have had in Aberdeenshire for years. First the snow, which stopped progress, and since then it has been so dark that we needed to bring in battery lamps as there is no power in the building. Plus, the cold, leading to many ingenious ways of layering clothes while still being able to work!
The project is now at the stage where we need to complete the decant and then the volunteers will be trained in basic conservation cleaning techniques to start caring for the collection without removing the patina of time.
Plans for springtime
The building repairs are due to start in the spring and all during the project we will be encouraging community involvement with public workshops on traditional crafts relating back to the souter. A large and important part of the project is digital interpretation. This will remove access barriers and open up this hard-to-reach location. Interested parties everywhere will be able to explore the workshop virtually.
Once the building is repaired, the collection will be replaced exactly where it was before, and we will once again open our doors for small tours as well as visitors being able to visit virtually.
Memories of a souter?
Follow our progress on social media and get in touch with us if you have stories to tell. Were your ancestors souters, or do you have memories of visiting a souter when you were young? As the generations go by, we are in danger of losing a huge part of our social history, the stories that bring the artefacts in the souter’s workshop to life.
To be part of this project contact us or follow the link to our JustGiving page.
For more information please contact: BCToffice@birsecommunitytrust.org.uk or visit Birse Community Trust.
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