Pietschman’s Shoes

Two youngsters are pictured above with a banner advertising an anniversary sale for Frank W. Pietschman, who was known as the “west side shoe-man.” Pietschman’s Shoe Store was located for several decades at the same location in Sandusky, at 417 Tiffin Avenue. The Twin Anniversary Edition of the Sandusky Register and Star News, from November 24, 1947 featured a full page advertisement for Pietschman’s Shoes.

The article stated that Frank Pietschman, a Civil War veteran, had first established a small shoe shop at 417 Tiffin Avenue in 1865. The original shop was a two story building with two rooms on the first floor and an apartment on the second level. Boots and shoes were custom made by six cobblers who were skilled in the art of shoe making. Frank Pietschman’s son William took over the shoe business in 1896. Though by this time, most people purchased ready-made shoes, one cobbler remained on staff for custom shoe orders. At the end of World War I, William’s son, who was named Frank William Pietschman, took over the family business. Young Frank W. Pietschman had served as an apprentice under his grandfather, and he had learned how to make shoes for individuals with deformed feet. In the year 1947, Frank W. Pietschman had been fitting people with corrective shoes for forty five years. Frank W. Pietschman passed away in October of 1979. Pietschman’s Shoes continued in operation, with the next generation of Pietschmans at the helm, for several years. Pietschman’s Shoes went out of business in the mid 1990s, but for decades it was known as one of the oldest and most outstanding shoe stores in northern Ohio.