HR0635LRB103 39724 ECR 70174 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to recognize the 150th anniversary of
4Joseph F. Glidden filing his patent for barbed wire; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Farmer Joseph Glidden, along with hardware
6merchant Isaac Ellwood and carpenter Jacob Haish, crafted the
7idea for a barbed wire fence upon witnessing a fence board with
8projecting barb points at an agricultural fair in September
91873; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Joseph Glidden and his wife, Lucinda,
11experimented at the Glidden Homestead using a modified coffee
12mill and a grindstone to create the first practical strand of
13barbed wire; and
 
14    WHEREAS, At the age of 61, Joseph Glidden traveled to
15Chicago to file a patent for his new invention on November 24,
161874; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Joseph Glidden and Isaac Ellwood built the
18world's first barbed wire factory in 1875; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Barbed wire played a significant role in settling
20the American West, where it became popular due to its

 

 

HR0635- 2 -LRB103 39724 ECR 70174 r

1durability and affordability; and
 
2    WHEREAS, In 1895, Joseph Glidden, Isaac Ellwood, and Jacob
3Haish, along with journalist Clinton Rosette, founded what is
4now Northern Illinois University with part of the land where
5the idea for barbed wire originated; and
 
6    WHEREAS, By the time of Joseph Glidden's death, Isaac
7Ellwood estimated that their factory had produced enough
8barbed wire to circle the earth 17 times, earning DeKalb the
9nickname of "The Barb City" to this day; therefore, be it
 
10    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
11HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
12we recognize the 150th anniversary of Joseph F. Glidden filing
13his patent for barbed wire; and be it further
 
14    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
15presented to the Joseph F. Glidden Homestead and Historical
16Center as an expression of our esteem and respect.