For me Keds were a symbol of girls just as much as the circle with a cross below it. In the era in which I grew up, every girl wore Keds. They were uniquely "girl sneakers" in those days. I don't want to say how long ago that was, but girls wore "dungarees" instead of jeans in those days.
Hey Seeker, what do you say to Keds AND bathing suits? I spent my summers at a boarding house a couple of blocks from the beach. In the morning there would be a migration of moms and kids from the "inland" protion of the town to the beach. The last 50 yards or so before the boardwalk was blacktop, so (in early summer at least), shoes were needed. The girls, of course wore their Keds.
By the end of summer all of us had hobbit-like soles on our feet from spending so much time barefoot. Splinters from the boardwalk and walking across blacktop that had been baking in 95 degree sunshine all day long were no longer noticed. However, the girls still wore their Keds to the beach, and carried them home.
As I recall, most girls got a pair of Keds at the beginning of the summer, and wore them mostly sockless for all summer long. Some of them would occassionally bring them into the shower with them to wash them.
One day my sister forgot to wash hers. She threw them over the top of the door to the outdoor shower and asked me if I would wash them for her. I did so with great care.
By the end of the summer, the Keds were fairly trashed. Soles were worn through the rubber, and toes stuck out from the canvas uppers. Such is the life of a play shoe at the end of an active girl's feet.
When the girls got older (about 12 or so), they would have TWO pairs of Keds: one for the beach, and one for the local dance held once a week at the church and other "formal" affairs. These usually lived on into the fall 🙂.
