IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF HORSE-SHOES
Year: 1842

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, HENRY
BARRON RODWAY, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Wine Mer-
chant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at West-
minster, the Seventh day of March, in the fifth year of Her reign, did, for
Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Henry
Barron Rodway, Her especial licence, full power, sole privilege and authority,
that I, the said Henry Barron Rodway, my exors, adññors, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Henry Barron Rodway, my exors, adñors, or
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town
of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF HORSE-SHOES;" in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that I,
the said Henry Barron Rodway, shall cause a particular description of the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be inrolled in Her said Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said in part recited
Letters Patent, as in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will
more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Henry Barron Rodway, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Inven-

page_text: tion, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, are fully
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, reference
being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the figures and letters
marked thereon, that is to say:-
My Invention relates to constructing horse-shoes by employing bar iron 5
rolled with a groove therein, equal at least to three-cights of an inch wide, and
produced by rolling in bars of iron not less than three-quarters of an inch wide.
In making horse-shoes as heretofore practised, there has been usually a small
groove towards the outer edge of each horse-shoe, where the holes are punched
for receiving the nails, and this groove has in some cases proceeded all round, 1
groove lias
particularly in what are called racing. plates. In such cases the
been about wide enough to receive the heads of the nails by which the horse-
shoes are affixel. 1 do not, therefore, claim the making horse-shoes with
grooves generally, but only when such grooves are at least three-eighths of an
inch wide, and made by rolling in a bar of iron at least three-quarters of an c
inch wide.
And in order that the Invention may be fully understood and readily carried
into effect, I will proceed to explain the means pursued by me.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING.
Figure 1 represents plans of parts of bars of iron suitably formed for 2
making horse-shoes of various sizes according to my Invention, and I form
such bars by means of suitable rollers, in the same manner as other bar iron
is rolled, the rollers employed differing only in the grooves formed therein, as
will be understood by the sections of the bars used.
Figure 2 shows cross sections of the bars used, and suitable for different sizes
of horse-shoes, by which the nature of the groove or concavity formed on the
under surfaces will readily be seen, and it will also be seen that the part or edgo
of the bar which is to form the inner rim or edge c, c, of a horse-shoc is rolled
of less height or thickness than the other edge b. b, which is important to the
obtaining a well-formed horse-shoe according to my Invention. It will readily S
bo understood that the sizes and weights of the shoes will, as heretofore, vary
according to circumstances.
Figure 3 shows the plan or under side view of a horse-shoe made according
to my Invention; and Figure 4 shows a cross section of the shoe, taken at the
dotted lines a, a, in Figuro 8. The outer edge b, b, of the horse-shoe, it will bo
seen, is about twice as wide as the inner elge c, c, of the horse-shoe, the space
between the edges or rims b and c being a concave groove e. the holes for the
nails being punched through the horse-shoe from within the concavity or

page_text: groove e, as is shown at d, d, d, and near to the outer rim or elge b, b, and the
holes are sunk or enlarged sufficiently to receive the heads of the nails, as is
shown; or, if desired, the nails may be passed through holes formed in the rim
or edge b, b. The Drawing shows the concavities or grooves e, between the
rims or edges b and c, formed at the under side of the horse-shoe, to be equal to
about two-thirds the width of the horse-shoc, which is the width of groove I
prefer in all cases; and such is tho depth of the groove or concavity, that the
pressure of the foot will be principally sustained by the outer and inner rims or
edges b and c, whereby the horse will be enabled to take more firm and secure
hold upon the ground, and the accidents and diseases occasioned by slipping,
and other evils arising from the construction of horse-shoes in relation to the
formation of horses' feet, will be less frequent. It will be evident that a horse-
shoe of a given weight and dimensions will, when made according to my
Invention, be more stiff than one of the old construction.
I would remark, that the smith, in making up shoes from bars of grooved
iron according to my Invention, may "steel" the front parts thereof, and may
when desired form "calkings;" and, further, he may make the heels solid by
beating up the ends and forging the same; or, in cases where it is desired to
have the heels solid, the bars of iron may be rolled with hollow grooves with
intervals of solid between them, so that when cut into lengths for horse-shoes,
the solid parts will form the heels of the horse-shoes.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and the manner of per-
forming the same, I would wish it to be understood that I do not confine
myself to the precise details here given, nor do I confine myself to the sizes
shown in the Drawing, provided they be as large or larger than the least
dimensions stated in this my Specification. And I would remark that I have
not thought it necessary to describe the process of shaping or forging shoes
made according to my Invention, as a shoeing smith will readily perform that
operation; and it will be found that horse-shoes made from grooved bars, such
as are above described, will require much less time and labour in making than
when forging the same sized horse-shoes from a plain bar of iron. What I
claim is, the mode of manfacturing horse-shoes by making and employing bar
iron rolled with a groove therein at least three-eighths of an inch wide, and in
a bar at least three-quarters of an inch wide, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Barron Rodway, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Seventh day of September, One thousand
eight hundred and forty two.
HENRY BARRON (L.s.) RODWAY.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Seventh day of September, in the
year of our Lord 1842, the aforesaid Henry Barron Rodway came before our
said Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification
aforesaid, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form
above written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according
to the tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.
lurolled the Seventh day of September, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and forty-two.