Souter Johnnie

On a recent bob abooooot the Borders we stopped in the picturesque town of Selkirk with its up and down views of rugged rooftops and far-reaching views over the Ettrick Valley. I'm always fascinated as you follow along Ettrick Water, observing ornate towers, intricate lead work and solid architecture, depicting the wealth and stature of the community that lived here in its heyday.

But pulling off the high street is often the way to find out the real guts of a place, and in stopping to read the map on a random corner, we spotted this little gem of a fella...Souter Johnnie!

I was drawn to his outwardly cheery looking disposition, sitting high up on the side of a house on the corner of Back Row and Kirk Wynd, perusing passersby as he quality checks his brogues.

Souter is a Scottish word for cobbler or shoemaker, or mender, and is the affectionate term given to the people of Selkirk. It's the ideal name to roll off your tongue in a lovely Selkirk tone, gon on, try it!

After a bit of research about the significance of this specific Souter, the people of Selkirk came up trumps!

“This is my mother's uncle” Lesley told me. “He was the last Souter in Selkirk.”

“My dad worked for Smiths, the builders and told me he made the backing for it, so that would have been from around 1963 to 1970s” Billy told me. All helpful stuff in locating Johnnie's back story!

From the 1600s to the 1960s, shoe-making was the bread and butter for many men in Selkirk. Renowned for their brilliantly thin soled brogues, sold to Scottish and Irish farmers, which would withstand the harsh outdoor agricultural lifestyle. They held a series of tiny holes to help the water drain out. It must have been the pre wellie/walking boot era! The word 'brog' translates in Gaelic as 'rough' or 'stout' and was ideal to be worn in boggy conditions.

No wonder this fella looks so happy if he had so many repeat customers! People would travel far and wide for a pair of his shoes!

I loved the positioning of this sculpture and the fact that it was pretty hidden away, truly marking the spot where this specific craft was king.

I like it when art isn't blatantly arty and it catches your gaze and makes you wonder. What's art for if it doesn't make you question stuff?

In 1745 when the troops of Bonnie Prince Charlie were stationed at Selkirk, Souters supplied a large proportion of the army with shoes, again putting them on the map and heightening the profile of the Souters of Selkirk. Although in its day this was a prominent place, high up at the point of an old lookout and overlooking the site of Gallows Knowe.

The wronguns of Selkirk would be hanged just across from here for all and their grannie to see! This was also the gateway to the trade roads of Hawick to the South and St Boswells to the East. A place of many comings and goings for the folk of Selkirk but most notably as the location of Foul Brig Port, a name which hits the nose as it was the home of the Souters' tan pits, where leather was cured for shoe making.

Skip a paragraph if you don't want the gory wee details (and I don't mean small!)...but human urine was used in quantity to soften animal hides, remove fat and hair, and make the hide more pliable for crafting. The process could involve animal brains and faeces too. Brains, wee and poo, all for a shoe! It seems brutal for a pair of brogues!

Perhaps thankfully the area was demolished in 1767 and in the 1960s a new housing development grew, known as Selkirk Regis on the site of the old medieval town, without the need for a peg on the nose!

This small fibreglass statue stands as a heritage reminder of the centuries that came before the houses.

This jocund little Souter, now peppered with lichen, perches on his stool, apron clad and shoe in hand, with a lovely detail in his own well soled boots to boot!

John Guthrie was the last Selkirk Souter. He died at the ripe old age of 92 in 2003 after a life time of making soles for the souls of Selkirk!