Comments from the owner:
Evidently, these boots were made for miners.  They have a metal base in the shape of a "rubber" that you would wear over a pair of dress shoes.  It is light weight and aluminum color.  The metal does not come over the toes like a steel-toed boot.  The bottom "sole" of the boot has a series of hex head studs - they are about 3/8" in diameter and stick out about 1/4".  The bottom is stamped in the arch area with the information "Overland Shoe Company, Racine, Wis. Pat. Dec. 8, 1914".  In addition there is a number 8, which I presume is the size.

All around the top edge of the metal is a row of rivets that holds on the leather uppers.  The uppers look like normal tall lace-up boot uppers.  They are about 15 inches high and have a seam with a decorative arch (kind of like the one on the back pocket of a pair of Levis) about 10 inches up the shaft of the boot.  There is a leather pull-on tab at the top of the back.  They have 6 pair of eyelets and 9 pair of speed-lace posts, followed by a single pair of eyelets at the top.  There are some broken flat laces in the eyelets.  The boots are muddy, but the leather is in rather good condition, considering the potential age of these boots.  They were filled with mouse nests when I got them, but the remains of a very thick felt liner is present in each boot.

They must have been really awkward to walk in, since the sole is solid metal and does not flex at all.