A Short History of Horseshoes

In the 1897, a set of bronze horseshoes with nail holes was discovered in an Etruscan tomb which was dated to have been used around 400 BC. These were the oldest set of horse shoes discovered, when it was thought before that the Romans invented horseshoes around 100 BC--but those were a sandal-like boot made of leather with a metal reinforced bottom.

Although there are a few references in history of nail-on metal shoes being used by war horses in the 900's, they weren't commonly used by Europeans until around the time of the Crusades, a hundred years later. Over the next two hundred years, the horse shoe went from being made of bronze to being made of iron, undergoing the same evolution as metals used for swords, and by the 1600s, blacksmiths could buy ready-shaped horse shoes that they could heat up and finish to the exact size and shape of the horse's foot.

It wasn't until the Industrial Revolution, that a machine capable of making up to 60 steel shoes per hour was patented. Because of the use of these manufactured shoes, the North was given an advantage over the South in the Civil War.

Surprisingly to some, the shape and manufacture of horse shoes hasn't changed much since the 19th Century. The blacksmith still adjusts the shape and fit of the shoe to the horse, even when he uses a factory "keg" shoe. Shoes come in several different sizes to start with, but no two horses have the exact same shape to their hoof, so the farrier must adjust the shoe and change its factory shape to one that fits the horse most comfortably.

Because the shape of each horse's hoof is different, it truly was easy for trained scouts to track horses and know the horse's size and how much weight they carried. Many blacksmiths put a mark on the shoes they made as a signature on their work. This also could have been used by trackers to know which town the horse came from as well.

I've always had an affinity and great respect for the work of trained farriers and blacksmiths. When I was in college, it was one of the careers I considered for a while, but put the side because of the great amount of strength and stamina these metal workers need to be able to do their job. However, it turned out that I married a farrier, instead.

P. Creeden is the Sweet Romance and mystery pen name for USA Today Bestselling author, Pauline Creeden. Animals are the supporting characters of many of her stories, because they occupy her daily life on the farm, too. From dogs, cats, and goldfish to horses, chickens, and geckos -- she believes life around pets is so much better, even if they are fictional. 

Get her latest historical romance set in 1867 North Texas:

http://bit.ly/ABrideForHenry

Caring for Horses in the 1800's Winter

Besides writing full-time, my husband and I also run a horse riding stable in the middle of a suburban/city area. We are surrounded by concrete and businesses and most people don't know about our seven acres nestled right off a major highway in Virginia. Right now, in modern times, taking care of the animals on a farm is a full time job, and they are our livelihood, not just a hobby, like they might be for others.

According to the American Horse Council, there are currently about 9 million horses in the US, but in 1869 the number was closer to 13 million. Horses were much more common, used for transportation and work. So their daily care was of great importance to farmers and ranchers.

In the winter time, the most important precaution that horse owners needed to take during the harsh winter months was to make sure that horses had fresh water available. This often meant heating buckets on their wood stoves and then carrying them out to pour into troughs that were iced over, unless they had a running stream on the property.

Most horsemen and farmers fed their horses oats and barley, as those two feeds were higher in nutrient value and safer for the horses than straight corn or bran. In the summer months, they had to collect and bale hay to store for the winter months, because in order to maintain their weight, horses need to eat 1.5-2% of their body weight daily (depending on their level of work). And horses are grazers, which means that they eat little amounts all day long. So when the grasses they normally ate were unavailable, ranchers would need to drop bales of hay out for the horses to eat

When it snows, things get a bit trickier for horse owners. Many owners, during the harshest parts of the winter, would pull their horses' shoes off, so that the horses didn't collect ice and snow balls in their shoes which would make it difficult for the horses to move about without possibly pulling a tendon or ligament.

Even when horses were not able to fulfill their duties for traveling or working the farm, their caretakers still had to provide food, water, and care for them daily. (Reference for this article: The Horse: Its Keep and Management by William Cook 1891)

P. Creeden is the Sweet Romance and mystery pen name for USA Today Bestselling author, Pauline Creeden. Animals are the supporting characters of many of her stories, because they occupy her daily life on the farm, too. From dogs, cats, and goldfish to horses, chickens, and geckos -- she believes life around pets is so much better, even if they are fictional. 

Get her latest historical romance set in 1880 Wyoming:

http://bit.ly/APonyForChristmas

How Emigrants Live on their way across the Continent: 1877 -- by Kristin Holt

by USA Today Bestselling Author Kristin Holt

I'm fascinated by everyday life in America's Victorian Era. Little elements that everyone in 1877, for example, knew as commonly as we know what it means to "click on an icon". Useless, as far as foreign phrases go, to traveler across the American plains in the latter half of the nineteenth century--and most two-year-olds today know how to play games on an iPad.

Times change. That precise element--everything old is new again--contributes to the fascination readers find in books set in the American Old West. How did people find out a train's schedule? How much did passage cost? When did trains with vestibule (walking pathways) connections become commonplace? How were cars heated in the winter? What did travelers eat?

You might be familiar with Harvey Houses or Station Houses (eateries along the rail at stops). I've always read that outside of Harvey's Houses, created to fill that very need in the market, station restaurants served atrocious food. Poor quality, often spoiled, inedible food. To my delight and surprise, I came across this newspaper article from The True Northerner of Paw Paw, Michigan on May 4, 1877, wherein the unnamed newspaper columnist tells the curious reader how emigrants live on the trains, what necessities cost, and that  mothers traveling with children launder clothing and cook (can you imagine?) on the moving train.

 

Note: all price comparisons (from 1877 to 2016 [latest year offered by this source]) were prepared using The Inflation Calculator: WestEgg.com/Inflation

The writer was "astonished at the supply and cheapness (frequently used in a positive light, a.k.a. "affordable", "excellent price", in the 19th century) of the food along the road."

The prices attached to train fare and foods purchased may not seem irrational to you or me. We dine out and easily spend within the range charged at the finer Pullman eating houses. I feel compassion, though, for emigrants who sold everything they own in order to afford passage from Europe aboard a ship, then rail fare (expensive compared to airfare today!). Simply feeding each member of the family, meeting daily needs, and having anything leftover with which to start new in America must have been difficult.

No wonder emigrants cooked what they could aboard the train (atop the cast-iron stove used in winter to heat the car, I assume), purchased ready-to-eat foods along the way (bread, butter, milk), and thereby decreased expenses.

Many emigrants suffered hunger, deprivation, and fear, exacerbated by language barriers. This article showed a lighter side to my overall impression of the emigrant's plight. I guess if newcomers to America had enough resources to travel by train, life may have been as simple and affordable and easy as this newspaper article makes it seem.

 

Have you read a novel or novella that contains emigrants traveling by train toward their  new home in western United States (or Territories) in the nineteenth century?

How does this article shed light on your understanding of nineteenth century train travel?

Please scroll down and reply. I'd love to hear from you!

I wrote an article about luxury train travel--the opposite end of the spectrum from emigrant train travel. This post shares many vintage photographs of luxury train cars.

 

 Want to know more about Fred Harvey (of the famous "Harvey House")?

Copyright © 2017 Kristin Holt LC