What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?

“Shoes, as neat and Strong as ever was made or brought from the famous Shoe Town of Lynn.”

When Samuel Foster, a cobbler, set up shop in Portsmouth, he placed an advertisement in the June 24, 1768, edition of the New-Hampshire Gazette to inform residents that “he has now removed to this Town.” Like many others who advertised consumer goods and services, he stated that he delivered exemplary customer service, promising that “all Persons who favour him with their Custom may depend on being faithfully and punctually served.” Realizing that this fairly common appeal might not provide sufficient cause for readers to employ him, Foster turned to boasting about the quality of his shoes as well as favorably comparing the products of his workshop to shoes made in both Portsmouth and Lynn, Massachusetts.

He commenced with a local comparison, pledging that he made “Mens Shoes, of all Sorts, as neat and Cheap as any Shoe Maker in Town.” Foster introduced himself to his new neighbors with an assertion that this shoes were equal, if not superior, to those produced by any of his competitors in the area. Just in case that was not bold enough, he trumpeted an even more striking claim about the quality of the shoes he made for women. He offered a variety for different tastes – “Womens Silk, Cloth, Calamanco and Leather Shoes” – and proclaimed they were “as neat and Strong as ever was made or brought from the famous Shoe Town of Lynn.” Shoe production began in Lynn in the seventeenth century. By the middle of the eighteenth century the town achieved a reputation for its shoes that extended far beyond New England. Advertisers who ran notices in newspapers printed in New York, Philadelphia, and Charleston sometimes specified that they carried shoes made in Lynn, suggesting that they expected this designation would resonate with prospective customers.

As a newcomer to Portsmouth, Foster needed to establish a new clientele among residents unfamiliar with his work or his reputation. To that end, he made forceful claims about the quality of the shoes produced in his shop, implicitly challenging readers to make purchases and confirm for themselves whether his work merited the accolades he claimed. At the very least, he associated “the famous Shoe Town of Lynn” with his workshop in the minds of potential customers.