Using roller skate key
The evolution of roller skates was pretty controversial. While the first thing we would recognize as a roller skate appeared on a London stage in 1743, and the first patent issued for a roller skate was given to Belgian inventor John Joseph Merlin in 1760 for his invention of what was essentially an ice skate with the blade replaced by wheels.
However, the first modern roller skate (using a four-wheel configuration for stability) was invented by Massachusetts native James Plimpton in 1863. They had two parallel sets of wheels, one beneath the ball of the foot and one set at the heel of the foot. The wheels were actually made of boxwood and mounted on rubber springs making it possible for people to corner smoothly.
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They also came with a key that people used to adjust the fit. So, do you really think your grandkid will know what a roller skate key is? (I don’t think so).
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… and apparently the person who wrote this doesn’t know what a skate key is for either.
Kids with a skate key in their pockets weren’t wearing the leather boots with permanently attached wheels and axles. They clamped skates onto the soles of their shoes, using the key to tighten them in place. Not to “adjust the fit”, as the article claims.