a tale of tails, tenacity, and tedium, as told by me, usually barefoot and bellowing

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Barbed Wire and History

During our clearing and cleaning we found broken rusted barbed wire.
To me, that's a gold mine.
We spent a day creating instead of destroying.

I love the peace symbol and tried to make one here. The center of the symbol is made from T.V. Allis "Buck thorn" barbed wire patented in July 1881 in Texas.  It came in narrow, medium and wide.  I will be removing the washer I used to TRY and cover the different colored wire and removing the wire and replacing it with an old piece.  I want mine all rusty.

Five varieties of barbed wire can be seen here. "Beginning in 1868, a series of patents was issued to several inventors for strong, mass-produced fencing made from interlocking strands of wire. These wires were outfitted with sharp barbs that kept even the toughest cattle from muscling through it. The varieties of barbed wire seen here include: the Kelly "Diamond Point" right twist (1868), Burnell four-point (1877), and Glidden two-point, (1874), H. B. Scutt "Y" plate (1878) and T. V. Allis "Buckthorn" (1881). Barbed wire ended the open range and with it the cattle drives and the range lifestyle that created the Texas cowboy legend."

The main part of these wreaths is the barbed wire patented by Joseph Glidden  in July of 1874 in Illinois.  "Cheaper than dirt and stronger than steel" was the line used to sell all models of barbed wire.  Kansas Barbed Wire Museum in La Crosse Kansas has 2100 unique samples of barbed wire. 
I made some wire art too.
Can you see the bull and the heart?
If not, I have to hang up my wire sculpture hat.
Dr Peppers were drunk.
Skin was poked.
Poked skin bled but all in all, it was a perfect day to recycle some old wire.
and a good night to do some research.

21 comments:

The Cranky said...

I love me some barbed wire and would really like to get my hands on some, to make wreaths! Love the peace sign. =)

LilliStJohn said...

I really enjoyed the history of the barb wire for I didn't know that much about it. I like your wreaths and the bull with the heart. The heart stood out in the photo, I noticed that first. Great work Gail and interesting history. Thanks for bringing it to us. Have a sweet day and hi to all. Hugz to M :)

eileeninmd said...

Hello, what a great find! I love the wreaths, the peace sign is my favorite too. Have a happy day!

MadSnapper said...

they are wonderful and wlll sell quickly. perfect for hanging on fences and gates or even a door... i saw on Flea Market Flip 2 people turn a ball of barb wire into an gorgeous hanging light fixture, it sold first and for several hundred dollars... i love rust to

Lynne said...

Loved the barbed wire wreaths, great one with the peace sign!
Are you selling them in your shop?

OmaLindasOldeBaggsandStuftShirts said...

that's a lot of work......and it really paid off. All of these look wonderful. xoxo Linda

A Joyful Cottage said...

What a fun thing to do. The wreaths are great, and my favorite is the one with the cross. I love that. This reminds me of the pile of rusted steel we've dug up out of our yard. Big spikes, chain, bolts, etc., etc. Our lot once housed a logging truck repair shop, and all this junk is what remains. Your barbed wire is much more fun. :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Very creative! And I learned something. Although I'd heard there were hundreds of varieties of wire.

Cynthia said...

Interesting facts about barbed wire. The only thing I've ever created from it is holes in my pants! You know, crawling through?

Anonymous said...

Great use of rusted barb wire. I wouldn't mind one of those wreaths myself.

Arkansas Patti said...

Well aren't you clever. I love it when people take throw away items and make some thing useful out of it.

Blogoratti said...

Really great stuff!

Debbie said...

Very clever ideas and anything joined with Dr. Pepper has to be awesome!!

21 Wits said...

What a great find, and absolutely lasting decorations too! Just beware of the bites! Yikes, that's sharp to work with.

troutbirder said...

My memory is shaky on old western movies but didn't barb wife give those damn sheepherders an edge over the rancher/cowboys....:)

Lowcarb team member said...

That is a amazing Gail ... so many may have just discarded the wire.

All the best Jan

LindaG said...

I love the wreaths, Gail. Especially the cross ones. You should leave the multicolor one. Maybe a hippie will buy it. ;-)
Thank you, Gail. God bless. ♥

Ida said...

Wow that's a lot of old rusty barbed wire. It has such history doesn't it. I like the pieces you created. Especially the one with the cross. I did see the heart and the bull after enlarging. Great way to repurpose old wire.

Farm Girl said...

I love stories about history and the history of Barbwire is incredible. We have some around here and one of my favorite wreaths is one my sister in law made of it. How very interesting and you have some very old examples on your place.

Anonymous said...

Very cool post, and very cool artwork. I like the mixture of colours, new, and old, rust and clean wires. It adds much to the whole finished product. Awesome! You could sell those!

Martha said...

That is quite impressive! I never would have thought that you could create such cool artwork out of this. You learn something new every day :)

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