Inventors
Horseshoes,
Nails, Saddles, and Riding
By
Mary
Bellis
Sculptures and drawings that date
from the 2nd millennium BC show men and women on horseback. The saddle
probably originated in the societies of the Asian steppes (as well as the the stirrup and
the horse collar) and received a high
degree of development in medieval Europe.
It is unknown who invented the first horseshoe.
Early Asian horsemen used horse booties made from leather and plants. During the
first century, the Romans made leather and metal shoes called "hipposandals".
By the 6th and 7th centuries, European horsemen had begun nailing metal shoes to
horses' hooves. Around 1000 AD, cast bronze horseshoes with nail holes had
became common in Europe. The 13th and 14th centuries brought the widespread
manufacturing of iron horseshoes. Hot-shoeing, the process of heating the
horseshoe before shoeing the horse, became common in the 16th century. All
before the first horseshoe was ever patented.
Notable Patents
Henry Burden
In 1835, the first U.S. patent for
a horseshoe manufacturing machine was issued to Henry Burden (1791-1871)
of Troy, N.Y. Burden's machine made up to sixty horseshoes per hour.
J.B. Kendall - Composite Horseshoe
J.B. Kendall of Boston patented an improved horseshoe and possible the first
composite horseshoe U.S. patent #33709 issued in 1861.
Oscar E Brown
Oscar E Brown patented an improved double or compound horseshoe, which consisted of; an upper shoe secured
to the hoof of the animal and a lower auxiliary shoe irremovably attached
to the upper shoe. The object of invention was the provision of a secure
and reliable lock for fastening the lower shoe to the upper shoe, which
will permit the lower shoe to be readily applied and removed from the upper
shoe whenever it becomes necessary to renew the lower shoe or resharpen
it calks. U.S. Patent 481,271
The
Proper Hoof Angle
Horse-shoes and horseshoeing: their
origin and history. The early history of veterinary literature.
A
Short History of the Term "Farrier"
The meaning of the term "farrier"
has changed dramatically over the centuries from a horse doctor to a person
who shoes horses.
Interview
with Henry Heymering
Writings on the early years of farriering.
The
Legacy of the Horse
A chronological trip through the
history of humans and the horse.
Horseshoe
Nails
History varies on the origin of
iron horseshoes and horseshoe nails.
Who
Invented Horseshoeing?
Origin, history, uses and abuses
of horseshoeing.
Related Information
Farm
and Agriculture
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