The Haines Shoe House was built in 1948 by Mahlon N. Haines. Mr. Haines, a shoe salesman, was looking for a unique form of advertisement when he came up with the idea of building a shoe house after one of the work boots his company made, the high top work boot. Mr. Haines was known for going to an architect, holding out one of his work boots, and saying, "Make me a house like this."
The shoe house is made of a wooden frame, covered in wire lath, and coated in a concrete stucco. The house consists of 5 stories, housing three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, and kitchen. The living room is located in the toe, the kitchen is located in the heel, two of the bedrooms are located in the ankle, and the ice cream and gift shop are located in the instep of the shoe. There is also a small doggie shoe house in the backyard of the house.
Mr. Haines originally used the house as his family home, but soon after moved into the house across the street. He continued to rent the house to other families, who rented the house along with a maid and butler, and when the renters would leave, he would gift them a free pairs of shoes. A shoe house vacation contest was held in 1950 and the winners had all expenses paid personally by Mr. Haines, who said, "They were to be treated like kings and queens."
Inside the gift shop, you can find an assortment of different knickknacks and books related to the construction of the shoe house and the Haines family stories. In the backyard, you can sit outside in one of the many picnic tables and enjoy a refreshing treat from the ice cream shop inside.
This historical house is a fantastic example of how York takes small businesses to a whole new level. This house was created purely for advertisement to people around the city and it drew in a lot of new customers which helped the business flourish.
The Haines shoe house was featured on HGTV's What with that house and was visited in season 8 of the amazing race, which pleased the owners with the new publicity, although they were not allowed to talk about the amazing race covering the house until two years later.
This historical house is a fantastic example of how York takes small businesses to a whole new level. This house was created purely for advertisement to people around the city and it drew in a lot of new customers which helped the business flourish.
The Haines shoe house was featured on HGTV's What with that house and was visited in season 8 of the amazing race, which pleased the owners with the new publicity, although they were not allowed to talk about the amazing race covering the house until two years later.
If you live close to Hellam, Pennsylvania then I suggest you take the family out for a quick outing to one of the most interesting houses in Pennsylvania and maybe around the world. The house is easy to find and is cheap for a quick tour of the property. If you have claustrophobia, then I wouldn't recommend going inside the gift shop for very long, as the ceilings are quite low, but the rest of the house opens up as much as a shoe house can. The entire family would enjoy this experience as many others have and I am happy to say that I have finally crossed this one off the bucket list.