Mary Jane's origins

You've probably noticed that some of our shoes have a name without really knowing why. Today we're telling you the story of Mary Jane.

Mary Jane was a character created by Richard Felton Outcault, "Father of the Sunday Comic Strip", for his comic strip Buster Brown, which was first published in 1902. She was the "darling" of the title character Buster Brown and was drawn from real life, as she was also Outcault's daughter of the same name. In Outcault's own word, she was the only character drawn from life in the Buster Brown strip, although "Mrs. Brown" did resemble Outcault's wife.

In 1904, Outcault travelled to the St. Louis World's Fair and sold licences to up to 200 companies to use the Buster Brown characters to advertise their products. Among them was the Brown Shoe Company, which later hired actors to tour the country, performing as the Buster Brown characters in theatres and stores. This strategy helped the Brown Shoe Company become the most prominently associated brand with the Buster Brown characters. The style of shoe both Buster Brown and Mary Jane wore came to be known by her name, Mary Jane. Interesting, isn't it?

Now you know more about the origins of the name Mary Jane, one of our most popular shoes.