The Brannock Device

Ever since I was four years old, I've wanted to own a Brannock Device. They are are an design masterpiece: elegant, rugged, graphically interesting, and absolutely functional. They have barely changed in 75 years. If you've ever been to a shoe store, you know they're cool.

Charles F. Brannock (1903-1992) began fiddling with foot-measuring devices in college. After a trial by fire in his father’s shoe store, Brannock's device soon gained favor over other systems because it measured foot length and width at the same time. His early drawing to the right shows most of the details of the final device—just like the Brannock devices used in shoe stores today. Brannock obtained a patent in 1928, and it's been The Shoe Size Thing ever since.

You can buy them new for $75 or so. . .but I found one on Ebay for $5 (see photo below), and it now sits in my office, in the traditional spot, right in front of a chair.


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