USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Joseph Farwell Glidden, (born Jan. 18, 1813, Charlestown, N.H., U.S.-died Oct. 9, 1906, De Kalb, Ill.), American inventor of the first commercially successful barbed wire, which was instrumental in transforming the Great Plains of western North America.

Detailed explanation-2: -Glidden made innovations to existing barbed wire designs by creating a double strand of wire that held barbs securely in place. He established the Barb Fence Company to manufacture his wire; it was an immediate success. Glidden eventually sold his interest to the Washburn and Moen Manufacturing Company for $60, 000.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Glidden Homestead. Joseph F. Glidden was granted a patent on November 24, 1874 for “The Winner, ” what became one of the most-widely used types of barbed wire in the nation. It all began on the Glidden farm, at the time “a mile west of the city of DeKalb.”

Detailed explanation-4: -On October 27, 1873, a De Kalb, Illinois, farmer named Joseph Glidden submits an application to the U.S. Patent Office for his clever new design for a fencing wire with sharp barbs, an invention that will forever change the face of the American West.

Detailed explanation-5: -Glidden’s invention made barbed wire more effective not only because he described a method for locking the barbs in place, but also because he developed the machinery to mass-produce the wire. His invention also survived court challenges from other inventors.