I know the shoe tree from my high school years, visiting it frequently. My friends and I would ride four wheelers, through the country to simply sit under this tree and talk. I visited the shoe tree twice recently, each time with a slightly different perspective. The first time, I went the way I know, on a four wheeler through back, country roads, many unpaved. This brought on nostalgia of the many memories and friends that I have lost touch with. The second time, I went the “tourist” route. This route is no less through the country, except it was by car and all the roads happened to be paved. Even after all the times I have been there before, either way taken, the shoe tree still comes as a surprise.
Most shoe trees are visualized as a medium sized bushy tree in the middle of a field. This tree is on the corner of a four way, on the edge of the woods. Anyway one may take, the drive is through the woods the majority of the time. There are only a few houses to observe along the way, but the woods bring scenery to the long journey. The canopy shades the road offering flashes of light where the sun has broken through. These woods hide the shoe tree until the very last moment when this camouflaged, giant, oak tree ascends into view, towering over its subjects. It is unclear, at first, what the multicolored masses are that have engulfed the bottom half of the tree. But, within a second, the shapes become clear. They are shoes. There are hundreds of shoes.
As many times as I visited the shoe tree, I never knew anything about the significance or history of this tree. Phyllis Thomas dedicates a few paragraphs of her book, Off the Beaten Path Indiana to this magnificent tree. At one point Thomas then discusses the few things the people of Milltown know, or think they know about the tree. The first being the date and way it was started. They narrowed it down to the timeframe of the early 1960’s. The people like to believe it was started by someone who had an old pair of shoes that had been through too many good things to be simply thrown in the trash. So this person decided to put the shoes on display high in the tree. Thomas states,
Although old shoes hang from many places these days, the folks in Milltown, who refer to this tree as the towns “branch office,” will tell you that their shoe tree is the original. In fact, they claim, they’ve even copyrighted it (Thomas 184).
This tree obviously means a lot to this small town, and the people are very proud to claim it. What if this tree is truly the first shoe tree ever? It seems odd that the first one would be this little known tree that is in the middle of nowhere. There are no signs to get one there and no historical marker at the site. It is only the tree.
There is a gravel plot off the road beside the tree, only large enough to fit one vehicle. The first object in sight after exiting the car is a fifteen foot tall tree trunk charred with black. The burns resemble scars slicing the trunk. The black has a fragile texture and a small part crumbles to the touch. This tree has one extruding branch left that contains the surviving adornments of whatever event that caused it. There are two main clusters of shoes left on this tree. This tree belonged to the previous generation, and someone or something took it away. It essentially has scars to show now, with only a few shoes. The administrator of www.indianaplaces.com writes a brief description of this old tree. The writer refers to it as “legendary” and reveals that it is a sycamore tree, something I could not gather from its current state. The writer suggests, It is a fun place to visit and just maybe, if you successfully manage to lodge your shoes in its branches, you might be blessed with good fortune (Administrator).
It is word around the town that the famous Larry Bird’s old shoes were somewhere in this tree. If only I could have seen what this tree was in its prime (Administrator). All other sycamore trees around this area, that have survived the crazy weather, are giants. This tree must have been something to see. To think that the one and only Larry Bird threw a pair of his old shoes into this old tree, this far out in the country, is simply mind-blowing. One cannot help but wonder if the new tree holds as much “good fortune” as this one supposedly did.
As the eyes move past the original tree and circle the four way, tree becomes an understatement. The shoes have spread to many of the trees surrounding the four way. The eyes of course stop in awe at the main tree. There are no cars, no sounds besides those of birds. There are just shoes. The shoes cover the reachable portion of the tree. The branches sag with the heavy load of holding the many, many shoes. The ones that have been there a while seem to have become a part of the tree. Vines have grown up the tree, clinging to the shoes. They maintain the essence of the tree, so the shoes can be in attendance for more generations to witness.
The shoes themselves have no pattern or theme. There are tennis shoes, flip-flops, work boots, fashion boots, heels, and so many others. The sizes vary from baby shoes to adult shoes. This tree is for everyone to put a piece of their history into a tree for many to view. A few specific shoes catch the eye. There is a pair of shiny, black leather go-go boots that will raise a smirk or two. These boots show their age as the top and bottom of one boot has begun to separate. There are quite a few work boots. One black pair with purple lining stands out the most.
The grounds below the trees possess the shoe graveyard. It is survival of the fittest. The shoes put up there the greatest, and survive the storms long enough for the vines to support them become history. The others fall to their misery to rot away in the weeds. At the edge of the woods, behind this graveyard, lies a large horizontal branch respectfully spray painted with Foo hearts Sara.
One is filled with curiosity. With this tree, so many questions arise. Who are Foo and Sara? What made the tree catch fire? But more importantly, questions about the shoes come to mind. How did that person get their shoes so high in the tree? Where have these shoes been? Who was the person who wore these shoes? Why did that person choose to put these shoes in this tree? One may find himself or herself wishing the shoes could tell their stories. They could share much wisdom. They are like the elderly, full of knowledge just waiting for someone to listen. Yet time goes by, and the shoes cannot talk. They will hang there for many years, keeping history to themselves.
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| The Original Shoe Tree |
Works Cited
Administrator. “Legendary Shoe Tree.” Places to Travel and Vacation in Indiana. 11 Nov. 2010. Wordpress. Web. 19 June. 2011.
Powell, Kevin. Photograph. “Shoe Tree.” Doug Kirby, Ken Smith, Mike Wilkins. Milltown, Indiana-Shoe Tree. 29 Oct. 2003. Web. 20 June. 2011.
Thomas, Phyllis. Off the Beaten Path Indiana. 9th ed. Guilford: Globe Pequot, 2007. Print
