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Medical
Footwear ➔ Shoes
Identifier:
2022.44.7Description:
These shoes are part of collection 2022.44 which tells the story of Gertrude Irwin of Allendale, Michigan. Born in 1927, Gertrude contracted polio in August 1951 at the age of 24. She was admitted to Kelsey Hospital in Lakeview, Michigan at 8:00 A.M. and by the end of the day, she was completely paralyzed. The following morning she was transferred to Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan where she was quarantined for five months. By June of 1952, Gertrude was admitted to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Warm Springs, Georgia where she stayed for an additional six months. After rehabilitation and therapy, she regained the use of most of her body with the exception of her left side from the waist down, which remained paralyzed. To assist with walking, Gertrude was fitted with a custom brace and crutches. The brace was changed and updated many times over the years but her crutches, which were built for her at the Warm Springs Institute, were the only pair she ever used. Post-polio, Gertrude continued to live a full and accomplished life. She had four children (two prior to polio, two after) and was a well-known seamstress in West Michigan. She was an active volunteer and provided food for her family by hunting, fishing, and canning. According to her daughter Vicki, Gertrude never regretted contracting polio. When people asked why it happened to her, she would reply "If not me, it would be someone else, so why not me?". Gertrude passed away at the age of 94 on November 17th, 2021.These brown Barefoot Freedom shoes were worn with leg brace 2022.44.5 and were specially fitted to accommodate the brace. The left shoe has a metal stirrup embedded into the heel that attached to the brace at the ankle. Both shoes have additions on the heel, the left to secure the stirrup, and the right to even the height of the shoes.
Date:
2010 – 2015Materials:
Metal, LeatherCurrent Location Status:
In StorageCollection Tier:
Tier 2Source:
In honor of Gertrude L. IrwinRelated Entities:
Vicki Tiano (donor) Gertrude L. Irwin (used by)Alternate names: Gertrude Smith
Gertrude L. Smith Irwin was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan on January 28th, 1927. She married Dudley Irwin on September 4th, 1945 in Big Rapids, Michigan, and together, they had four children. In 1951 at the age of 24, Gertrude contracted polio and survived several months in an iron lung. After six months of rehabilitation at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Warm Springs, Georgia, she regained full function of her body with the exception of her left leg. At the age of 94, Gertrude passed away in Allendale, Michigan on November 17th, 2021.
