Original Item: Only One Pair Available. This is a wonderful pair of unissued/new old stock “Jungle Sneakers”, as worn by US Marines in the Pacific Theater of War. These are very lightweight canvas shoes and are surprisingly quiet when moving through the brush, so why wouldn’t you want to wear them in a combat zone? Another great thing about these shoes is that being made of breathable canvas, the operators wearing them would find themselves in wet environments, but due to the material they dried out quicker than the regular issued boots, prolonging the life of their feet.

The use of "jungle" or "hot weather" boots and shoes predates World War II, when small units of U.S. soldiers in Panama were issued rubber-soled, canvas-upper boots for testing. Developed in conjunction with the U.S. Rubber Company, a pair of jungle boots weighed approximately three pounds with the more preferred “sneakers” weighed considerably less. Adopted in 1942, the design of the jungle boot/shoes was based on the idea that no boot could possibly keep out water and still provide sufficient ventilation to the feet in a jungle or swamp environment. Instead, the jungle boot was designed to permit water and perspiration to drain, drying the feet while preventing the entry of insects, mud, or sand.

This pair is in great condition but some of the rubber appears to have worn away on
the canvas. The laces on both sneakers are fully intact and tied, with a small bit of fraying on one of them. There is a maker’s label stamped under the flap but they are a bit too faded to read, but we can make out BETS SHOE CO. INC. This pair is marked 9 on the interior sole and the side of the canvas, with an embossed label on the heels:

MADE IN U.S.A.
9

This is an insanely scarce pair of WWII footwear, ready for further research and display.