Over 100 Years of Experience

Arriving from Italy

The years 1910 to 1920 were the high point of Italian immigration to the United States. Over 2 million Italians immigrated in those years, with a total of 5.3 million immigrating between 1820 and 1980. About a third of them returned to Italy, after working an average of 5 years in the US.

Now California has over 1,533,599 Italian Americans.

The Fazzio Family rooted themselves deep into the California landscape by building a shoe store in San Francisco on Maiden Lane.

The Maiden Lane Shoe Store in San Francisco

Crafted by the Cobblers, The Maiden Lane Shoe Store was located in downtown San Francisco, one block from historic Union Square. Maiden Lane is parallel to Post Street and Geary Street. The shoe store was located between Grant Avenue and Kearny Street, where celebrities enjoyed the high crafted style of custom-made boots and shoes.

World War II in the South Pacific

Fred took his craft to war by building boots in the South West Pacific during World War II on the Island of Bougainville . The South West Pacific was one of two theatres of World War II in the Pacific region, between 1942 and 1945. The South West Pacific theatre included the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (excluding Sumatra), Borneo, Australia, the Australian territory of New Guinea (including the Bismarck Archipelago), the western part of the Solomon Islands and some neighboring territories. The theatre takes its name from the major Allied command, which was known simply as the "South West Pacific Area".

In the theatre, Empire of Japan forces fought primarily United States and Australian forces. Dutch, Filipino, British and other Allied forces also served in the theatre.

Most Japanese forces in the theatre were part of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group, which was formed on November 6, 1941, under General Hisaichi Terauchi (also known as Count Terauchi), who was ordered to attack and occupy Allied territories in South East Asia and the South Pacific.

On March 30, 1942, the Allied South West Pacific Area command (SWPA) was formed and U.S. General Douglas MacArthur was appointed Supreme Allied Commander South West Pacific Area.

Fred says, “I was sent to the Solomon Islands then to Bougainville as a boot maker and armed guard. Bougainville was the largest island in the Solomon's.

See More Books on the History of Bouganville in the Cobbler's Bookstore (by Clicking Here)

The Bougainville Campaign

The Bougainville campaign of 1943-45, was a campaign of World War II. The island of Bougainville was of strategic importance to the Allies and Japanese, in both the Pacific Ocean and South West Pacific theatres.”

Bougainville at the time was part of the Australian territory of New Guinea, and is geographically part of the Solomon Islands chain. The Bougainville campaign was therefore part of both the New Guinea campaign and the Solomon Islands campaign. It was occupied by Japanese forces in 1942.

Fred goes on to say, “We needed to control Bougainville to be within striking range of Rabual.” Allied land operations to retake the island from the Japanese 17th Army began with the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, on November 1, 1943, when the U.S. 3rd Marine Division made an amphibious landing. They were supported by the U.S. Navy. The intention was to establish a beachhead on Bougainville, within which an airfield would be built.

Protracted and often bitter jungle warfare followed, with many casualties resulting from malaria and other tropical diseases. The Marines were later followed by the U.S. Army's Americal Division. Major battles which involved U.S. forces also included Hill 700 and the Battle for Hill 260.

“We did not capture the entire island of Bougainville but did manage to control an enclave from which we could operate.” Eventually all of the Japanese planes at Rabual were removed or destroyed.

Baseball

Fred came back to the United States after the War in the Pacific to reward himself with a pair of baseball cleats. One of the most interesting periods in United States sport history is the period between 1942 and 1945 when professional baseball played an important role on the home front and around the world. With the entry of the United States into the Second World War, baseball teams endured tremendous short-term changes. Many baseball stars such as Hank Greenberg, Joe DiMaggio, Bob Feller, and Ted Williams were drafted or volunteered for military service. In most cases, those stars became players for army or navy baseball teams that played to entertain service personnel. Others, like Bob Feller, found themselves in the midst of combat against the Japanese or the Germans.

Baseball was widely recognized as the national sport of the United States. The game is sometimes referred to as hardball to differentiate it from similar sports such as softball.

Cleats

Cleats are a type of shoe designed especially for sports played on grass or dirt, such as baseball or soccer. The shoes generally have large studs on the bottom to assist in gripping the surface, preventing sliding and assisting in rapid changes of direction. The stud itself is often called a cleat.


Windsor, California

Windsor is a town in Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 25,745 at the 2000 census. Sonoma County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. State of California, north of Marin County and the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the year 2000, Sonoma had a population of 458,614. The county seat is Santa Rosa. Many wineries are in Windsor.

Family Owned and Operated for Over 100 Years

The Fazzio Family continues this amazing tradition. They make quality boots for police, firemen, forestry workers, wineries, constuction workers and hunters. From motorcycle boots to events selling shoes in Las Vegas, the Cobbler Family keeps up with the latest trends, styles, and protective gear so that you wear the best boot.

The Cobbler
6500 Hembree Lane, Suite 215, Windsor, CA 95492
Tel: (800) 903-9837 - Fax: (707) 836-8687
Email: Annette@BootsandShoes.com