Barbed Wire


Have you ever wandered about how common things like barbed wire were invented? Who made it? Well it all started out when a farmer named Henry M. Rose made this contraption to control a "breachy" cow. Joseph Glidden, Isaac Ellwood, and Jacob Haish were all inspired by this. Glidden and Elwood later got together and started their own industry while Haish was always trying to start his own.

Fences Before the Barbs
Before barbed wire fences were made of whatever materials were available in the area. Wood, stone, earth, or living fences of shrubs. Wood was very scarce on the plains and expensive to bring in. Even when stone was available it was hard, intensive work and most settlers found it impractical. Living fences made up of trees or shrub, such as Osage Orange because it grew thick with needles, took many trees. Smooth wire was sometimes used but could not hold back cattle.

The Inventors
Jacob Haish was the true inventor of barbed wire. He also invented the machine that was used to make the wire in factories. He made barbs such as the "Eli", "S", and "Glidden" barbs. He had been going against Glidden from the beginning. His factories had given well paying jobs to hundreds of men in DeKalb county, Illinois area. In 1884 Haish organized the Barb City Bank, of DeKalb. He owned land in 12 states, 130 houses in DeKalb, and about 12 farms. Although he was a very wealthy man, he remained kind to everyone.
Henry M. Rose entered his wood and wire contraption in the county fair. He used glass, nails and any other sharp objects his fence. It was used to control a "breachy" cow. His patent was sent in on May, 1873. It inspired Glidden, Haish, and Ellwood to make their wire.

Joseph Glidden was a farmer in DeKalb for most of his life. His first designs were constructed by attaching barbs to a coffee grinder to make his barbs and then attached them to a piece of smooth wire. A second wire held them in place. One year later patent number 15712 was named "The Winner" in November 1874. He designed it in DeKalb, his home town. He was known as the "Father of Barbed Wire."
	Isaac Ellwood was also a farmer in DeKalb. He only applied for one patent- number 14775. He quit trying after seeing the superiority of Glidden's. He and Glidden later joined forces. Their company- Glidden and Ellwood's Barb Fence Company began making large amounts of their new wire. When the Washburn and Moen Company of Massachusetts approached them, Glidden wanting to return to his farm eagerly sold out his share. The new I.L. Ellwood and Washburn & Moen Company soon acquired many of the existing barbed wire patents. These patents gave them control of the entire barbed wire industry.

Frying Pan Ranch and XIT
Henry Stanborn was sent to Texas in 1875 to introduce and spread barbed wire through out the state. The farmers and ranchers were skeptical of the wire. They didn't think it would hold one cow not alone a whole herd. They sold very little wire and returned to DeKalb a year later. They soon returned to Texas and built a ranch with 120 miles of barbed wire fencing. It showed ranchers that it would hold cattle back. The ranch was not big enough to prove to people how well it worked. In 1881 when the State Capitol burned down, to pay for the rebuilding 3 million acres of public land were set aside for the Capitol Syndicate of Illinois. In exchange they received land that became the XIT Ranch. the X stands for the 10 counties it covered and the IT stands for in Texas. By 1885 476,000 acres had been fenced in. The XIT was an example of how the fence held the cattle in.

Problems With Wire
Fence-cutting It was very common for people to put up illegal fences on public lands for their cattle. other cattlemen were concerned about loosing public ground where they once grazed their livestalk. In 1883 a drought caused tension because it was hard for the cattle to find grass and water. During the night, groups that thought it was their job to protect public lands, cut the wire to drive the squatters from 'their' land. most fence- cutters went unpunished and unknown to sheriffs. When thieves and cattle rustlers joined fence- cutting things turned violent. They cut the fences of innocent farmers. The Texas Legislature made new laws in February 1884. They stated that roads and gates had to be installed. Putting up a fence without permission became a misdemeanor. Fence- cutting became a crime with one to five years in prison. Drift Fences In the early 1800's drift fences began showing up across the northeast edges of various open ranges. They were disconnected sections of fence put up to stop the movement of cattle from the north onto depleted grassland to the south. They were not meant to enclose the cattle only to keep them from entering land where they were unwanted. Fence- riders or line- riders set up camps along the wire to drive the cattle back north. By 1885 they stretched across the whole north. In 1885 sever blizzards hit the plains and drove the cattle south, but the drift fences stopped them. Drift fences resulted in the death of many cattle- called the "big die up." They were piled up against the mounds of wire. In 1886-87 the cold drove more cattle to drift fences causing thousands of dead cattle. The ranchers tore down the fences and blamed the wire for all the trouble. They said, "the sharp barbs inflicted the wounds on the livestalk that left untreated often resulted in pain, infection, and death." Moonshiners These people were often company salesmen who were unloyal. They sold the same wire as their company for a much cheaper price. This caused a serious threat to the companies. The first moonshiners were a group lead by John Gates. they moved west forming more groups such as the Iowa farmers Protection Association.

Kansas Fence Laws
In Kansas miles of fencing were being constructed daily. Lawmakers debated the issue and wrote "legally blind definitions of proper fencing." Both farmers and ranchers wanted to use the same land. If an animal broke down a farmers fence, the animal's owner was responsible for the damage and the farmer could keep any animal on his land until the damage was fixed.

Railroads and Barbed Wire
Wherever tracks crossed lawfully fenced private land, railroads were required to put up a fence along the right- of- way. Neighboring farmers started to "borrow" wire from the railroads and there was no way to tell who stole it to regain the wire. To solve this stealing problem unique variations of "The Winner" were made just for the railroad companies.

Weapon of War
Barbed wire has been used in every military battle of the 20th century. It stops both soldiers on foot and vehicles. It tangled up trucks and tore at men who tried to craw under, over, or go through it. The razor sharp barbs were closer together on a thicker piece of wire. They were much more vicious than the early Vicious wires.

3 Kinds of Wire
Early- Most styles of the early barbed wire were constructed by a sharp barb twisted around a piece of smooth wire. Physical injury to livestock was the main goal of the wire. Vicious- In the mid- 1880's after the drift- fence related deaths, the large, damaging wires were toned down. Obvious- These fences were made so that horses and cattle could see and avoid the fence. That way they would be contained and protected without being injured. they were made of shorter barbs on heavier wire.

Who knew that 128 years later we would still be using barbed wire? Through out the years it has been given many nicknames- "Bob Wahr," "Devils Rope," "Warwire," "Armored Fence," and many more. John W. Gates was right when he said "This is the finest fence in the world. Light as air. Stronger than whiskey. Cheaper than dirt. All steel, and miles long. The cattle ain't born that can get through it. bring on your steers Gentlemen!