Joseph Glidden: Birthing Barbed Wire

Joseph Glidden was credited for the barbed wire patent. Barbed wire is an interesting invention since it changed the development in Western America. Glidden was a farmer. He was born on January 18, 1813 in Charlestown, New Hampshire.

Glidden’s first barbed wire was made of coffee mill placed along a wire. He twisted another wire to keep the barns in place. Glidden was credited for the barbed wire’s patent in 1847, after which he founded the Barn Fence Company. His invention gave him a huge fortune. At his death in 1906, Glidden was one of America’s wealthiest men.

The effectiveness of Glidden’s barbed wire was tested in the “Flying Pan Ranch” in Potter County, Texas. Flying Pan Ranch housed 12,000 heads of cattle. Its success changed the landscape of ranching in America.

Glidden donated 63 acres of his real property to be converted into a school – the Northern Illinois Normal School. The school was launched on September 12, 1898. It started with 16 teachers and 139 students. In 1957, the school was renamed Northern Illinois University.

Glidden, a town in the State of Iowa, was named in honor of Glidden.