Issue No. 4
Texas A&M University Army ROTC
School Year 2021-2022 Fall 2021
Aggie Senior Boots Written by Cadet Bryce A. Reed ‘22
T
he Aggie boots started over 100 years ago when the Corps of Cadets changed from the typical dress gray service academy styled uniform. Cadets at this time liked the look of the military boots typical of Army Officers and mounted Soldiers, which the Army changed after World War I. Senior cadets often interacted with cadre members that wore riding boots and wanted to adopt this style of footwear for the senior uniform, that of a cadet officer. At this time, military boots were fairly similar to the current design, however, they were lace up along the front which was not aesthetically pleasing. To cover up the laces, butterflies were created in the 1930s and 1940s to show other organizations that the cadet was a part of and insert a personal flair to their appearance. Because at this time Texas A&M was an all male military college every aspect of life was centered around commissioning military officers. Before 1959 every cadet was placed in a unit that trained them how to be proficient at a designated branch of the military, the distinction between the officer cadets and the noncommissioned lower classes was aided with the use of these boots, which were used even in field environments. There are many photographs of the Cadet Connor Fortier ’22, Corps Commander leads the Corps of Cadets during one of the March-In for school year 2021-2022.
GIG’EM
early Corps of Cadets, especially the artillery and cavalry units training while wearing their senior boots. After the reorganization of the Corps of Cadets in 1959 many things changed, but the use of senior boots did not. The senior boots stayed a solidified part of the uniform tradition within the Corps of Cadets after THE WARRIOR BATTALION
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