Patten (shoe) dung and human effluent (from chamber pots)– was usually thrown directly into the street (often with minimal advance warning). Making full foot contact with such an unpleasant surface was, understandably, highly undesirable. Thus, pattens tended to only make contact with the ground through two or three strips of wood and raised the wearer up considerably, sometimes by four inches (ten centimetres) or more in contrast to clogs which usually have a low, flat-bottomed sole integral to the shoe. A later pattern of patten which seems to date from the 17th century, and then became the most common, had a flat
Eric Patten and Wayne, also known as Jack, and a daughter Jenny Lee. Patten joined the Toodyay Volunteer Fire Brigade in around 1941 and continued to serve in one capacity or another for the next 60 years. He continued his interest and attendance at the Toodyay Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service meetings until about six months before he died. On 13 March 1983 he was honoured with the naming of the Eric Patten Running Track for 40 years dedicated service. The track ran between Duke and Clinton Streets along what is now known as Charcoal Lane. This was a section of the