Did you know that Henry Wilson, the 18th Vice President of the United States, started out as a shoemaker in Natick? Born in Farmington, New Hampshire, in 1812, Wilson came to Natick as a young man, learned the shoemaking trade, and remained a Natick resident for the rest of his life.

Join longtime Natick Historical Society member Joe Weisse for a talk on Wilson's work as a cobbler, U.S. senator, and Vice President to Ulysses S. Grant.

At the end of the nineteenth century, more than half of all factory workers living in Natick were making shoes. Massachusetts was once the heart of the American shoemaking industry. By the end of the First World War, our state was producing more than forty percent of the nation's shoes!

The Natick Historical Society invites you to join Anna Fahey-Flynn of the Boston Public Library for a talk on the history of the shoe industry in Massachusetts with a special focus on our hometown.