It seems that Ammo Boots derive their name from the fact that they were procured by the Master Gunner and the Munitions Board at Woolwich rather than the Horse Guards where military gear normally began life. The first ones seem to have appeared in the 1880’s and, as is often the case with military gear, there are a multitude of variations which included ‘Boots,General Service’ which appeared in 1927 though everybody still seemed to call them ammo boots. The origin of the name is slightly speculative, but we know for sure that this pair of boots were issued to founder of out heritage collection, Mick Tighe, when he joined the Royal Marines in 1967, and at that time they called them parade boots. They were chucked in a shed when he left in 1977 only to be recovered 38 years later when he heard that some of the early rock climbers used Ammo Boots to climb in. He even found the picture of George (Scotty) Dwyer climbing in a pair back in the 1950s – see opposite. We soaked them in Neatsfoot Oil (leather preservative) and got new heel plates, so all we need is a parade ground to march on or a a cliff to climb!