Challenge: How to pay tribute to an entrepreneur who made quality shoes affordable to the working class, and whose legacy changed the life of school children in his community for generations to come?

Solution: Build a whimsical Steampunk “flying shoe” that showcases the product that put Bridgewater, MA on the map, but also represents the “wings” that great educators give students to help their souls soar to new heights as they start off life on the right foot!

Community Building: The new ModVic sculpture resembles a mechanical Victorian shoe, much like the one designed by local businessman William H. McElwain who envisioned a quality product that was still affordable and produced on a mass scale.

Between 1911 to 1913,  J. Franklin McElwain donated money for the property and construction of a local grammar school in honor of his deceased brother William H. who had operated an important and successful shoe firm in Bridgewater and had shown a commitment to the civic welfare of the town. William McElwain’s inventiveness and dedication to his profession helped revolutionize the global shoe industry.

The Steampunk sculpture was commissioned by MPZ Development and Capstone Communities for The McElwain School Apartments renovation project, which involves the rehabilitation of the existing grammar school building into 16 mixed income apartments that will benefit the Bridgewater community by offering new options in affordable housing.