List Slippers

A list was the border or edging of a piece of cloth, its selvage, woven in a slightly different way from the body of the material so that it would not fray or unravel. List slippers were made of material woven in this way.
List slippers were often worn when quiet was needed, say when somebody in the house was ill and people walking about in ordinary shoes on bare floors would disturb them.

  • List slippers were soft-soled shoes worn in the navy by the gunner and his mates. When a ship went into action, anyone who went in and out of the room where gunpowder was kept had to wear list slippers, to avoid striking a spark from spilled powder on the floor.