Holland had a Wooden Shoe Factory for over six decades

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Holland had a Wooden Shoe Factory for over six decades
Holland had a Wooden Shoe Factory for over six decades

Editor’s Note: This story was published in June 2020.

HOLLAND — Did you know Holland once had a Wooden Shoe Factory?

The business launched in the 1920s, when Chester Van Tongeren opened the Dutch Novelty Shop on the corner of River Avenue and Sixth Street — then Fourth Street — in downtown Holland. The establishment eventually took on the title of Holland’s Wooden Shoe Factory.

“I grew up with so many stories,” said Dave Gier, grandson of Van Tongeren. “It was my entire childhood. So many famous people — such as Rocky Marciano, Red Skelton and Johnny Weissmuller — came to visit. They all autographed wooden shoes that we had on display. There’s so much family history here.”

A postcard featuring Holland's Wooden Shoe Factory and Restaurant off U.S.-31. Today, the building is home to the Wooden Shoe Antique Mall and Restaurant.

In the early 1950s, Van Tongeren built an additional factory on Chicago Drive and M-21. He paired up with Fred Oldemulders, a well-known wooden shoe carver. Together, the two brought machinery from the Netherlands to make wooden shoes. Around this time, the Wooden Shoe Restaurant opened on-site.

But just a few years later, tragedy struck.

“I’ll never forget it,” Gier said. “It was Christmas Eve, 1956. My mom’s brother called and said, ‘The Wooden Shoe Factory is on fire. It’s burning down.’”

A postcard featuring Holland's Wooden Shoe Factory location off M-21. The factory and adjoining restaurant burned down on Christmas Eve, 1956. The factory was later rebuilt off US-31.

‘Probers Poking Through Ruins of Wooden Shoe’

An excerpt from The Holland Evening Sentinel, published Dec. 26, 1956, reads:

An investigation into the blaze, which completely destroyed the Wooden Shoe Factory on M-21 Christmas Eve, was expected to continue today.

The fire raced through the rambling one-story building shortly after 6:15 p.m. Monday and, within minutes, the entire structure was engulfed in flames.

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