IMPROVEMENTS IN SHOEING HORSES AND OTHER LIKE FOOTED ANIMALS, AND IN SHOES OR APPLIANCES FOR SUCH PURPOSES, AND ALSO IN MEANS OF APPLYING AND FIXING THE SAME
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Whiteford, of Greenock, in the County of Renfrew,
North Britain, Doctor of Medicinė, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
SHOEING HORSES AND OTHER LIKE FOOTED ANIMALS, AND IN SHOES OR
APPLIANCES FOR SUCH PURPOSES, AND ALSO IN MEANS OF APPLYING AND
FIXING THE SAME."
Sealed the 18th July 1879, and dated the 7th May 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Whiteford at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 7th May 1879.
JAMES WHITEFORD, of Greenock, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain,
Doctor of Medicine.' "IMPROVEMENTS IN SHOEING HORSES AND OTHER LIKE-
FOOTED ANIMALS, AND IN SHOES OR APPLIANCES FOR SUCH PURPOSES, AND ALSO IN
MEANS OF APPLYING AND FIXING THE SAME,”
This said Invention has reference to certain improvements in the construction of
shoes for, and in the mode of fixing the same to the feetof horses, and other like-
footed animals, the same being also improvements on and a further developement
of the Invention for which Royal Letters Patent were granted to me, dated
17th November 1877, No. 4303, and which are more applicable and economical
than those described in the Specification of the said Patent or others heretofore
in use.
The nature and novelty of this present Invention consist in forming the metal
part of the shoe of malleable, or malleable cast iron or steel, in the following
manner: It may be described as an ordinary horse shoe formed of angled iron,
that is, consisting of a horizontal and a vertical plate or web, meeting at the outher
margin at right angles with each other; the former (the horizontal) of a width
sufficient for the requirements of the shoe is made about one eighth of an inch
(somewhat more in the heavier kinds) in thickness. The upper or hoof surface of
this is formed as in an ordinary shoe, so as to present a proper bearing for the
hoof; the latter (the vertical) a quarter of an inch or thereby in thickness projects
from half an inch to five eighths of an inch downwards from the under or ground
surface of the horizontal plate. At the heels solid tips or buttons are formed of the
Drine Sd21

page_text: full width off the heel, and corresponding in thickness to the depth of the vertical
plate. These measure from behind forwards half an inch or more according to
requirements; they are rounded of behind, as in most of ordinary shoes, but have
a straight front edge, so that the anterior edges of the two heels when in position
shall form a straight line transversely. The vertical plane of this anterior edge of
the heels is made either perpendicular to the horizontal plane, or is bevelled
downwards and forwards, according to the modification to be used when this
bevelled form of the heels is used; a similar bevel is formed at the toes (on the
inner or position surface of the vertical plate), but downwards and backwards. In
the simplest modification (namely, without bevelled heel and toe) after the shoe is
fastened to the hoof a piece of sheet iron is fitted into the space formed by the
inner surface of the vertical plate, and bent downwards at the heel to a right angle,
so as to close this space and form a completely bounded recess. Into this recess a
slice of end or cross cut dry wood, preferably willow, is driven, being sufficiently
thick so as to project beyond the metal rim by about a quarter of an inch. When
the bevelled form or modification, is used a heel and toe piece of a form according
to the requirements of the shoe, of metal (iron or steel), and correspondingly
bevelled so as to dovetail into the bevels in the shoe, are fitted in, together with or
without (according to the circumstances) a sheet iron sole, and the wooden sole of
end or side wood; the latter with the grain of fibre laid transversely is then driven
into the recess formed, so as to hold the heel and toe pieces firmnly in position; these
heel and toe pieces, besides being bevelled so as to fit into the bevels in the shoe,
are angled and formed so as to overlap and rest upon the ground surface of the
vertical plate at the toe and the heel buttons of the shoe; and they may be made
to serve to purpose of calkins and toe pieces, as in the shoes of draught horses in
ordinary use, by projecting beyond the ground surface of the wooden sole to any
required extent; also by being sharpened or made chisel shaped in the ground
surface they are adopted for use in frost, or being plain on the ground surface, and
the wooden sole projecting they serve the purpose of simply preserving the shoe
from tear and wear. These moveable dovetailed toe and heel pieces may be held
in position in various ways, besides by relying on the wood alone; for example,
1st., by lateral slips of iron passing from toe to heel, and fixed either by the wood
or by projections cast on the inner surface of the vertical plate, or by screws; 2nd,
by transverse slips of wood or iron similarly fixed to the shoe, the projections cast
on the inner surface of the vertical plate being in such case placed within half an
inch or an inch of the toe and heel pieces when in position; 3rd, by an inner shoe
as it were corresponding to the vertical plate of the shoe, and secured by this when
in position by two side screws. Again the moveable too and heel pieces, besides by
dovetailing, or instead of dovetailing with the shoe, may be held in position by a
pin or screw passing through or partly through one or both, and retained either by
the wood or other arrangement as above; the principle relied on for keeping them
fixed being in both cases that these pieces before being dislodged must be moved
backwards or forwards horizontally, which the wooden sole or other means prevent.
The shoe may be fastened to the hoof in the ordinary way, with nails having
flattened or very short heads, or in one or other of the following ways, which form
part of this Invention:-1st, by a series of separate toothed clips of iron or steel,
and of various shapes according to requirements, provided with screwed skanks.
The simplest forin consists of a strong nail flattened towards the end with the point
chisel-shaped, or conically sharpened and bent to a right angle or somewhat less (or
more) within a quarter of an inch of the extremity, and again bent when necessary
at an obtuse angle with the shank at a distance of half an inch (more or less) from
-the first bend. In applying this a notch is made in the border of the hoof opposite
the nail hole in the shoe, through which the screwed shank is passed downwards;
the sharpened point of the clip is then tapped into, so as to bury itself in the hoof
where this is thickest, namely, at the line where the outer wall joins the sole, and
by means of a small nut and metal washer applied below the shoe is sufficiently
tightened; in other forms of this clip the part which applies itself to the hoof wall

page_text: is made of several branches, each ending in a sharp point like a claw, or again of a
thin metal plate having several teeth projecting from its inner surface; again an
ordinary nail (horse-shoe) may be used with a screwed shank instead of a head.
and this being driven and clinched in the usual way the sboe may then be tightened
on or removed without withdrawing the nail, by means of a nut and washer
applied below in a similar manner; 2nd, by a series of such toothed clips applied
to the hoof wall in a similar manner as above described, but connected together on
the under side of the shoe by flat metal bands, whereby by a lever or screw they
can be made to act simultaneously in applying themselves to the hoof. In both
cases the fastening is covered, and so protected from injury by the wooden sole.
The screwed and toothed clips may be used for ordinary horse shoes as well
(instead of ordinary nails) by forming recesses by stamping or boring in the under
side, so as to receive the fastening screw nuts; and their use in this manner and
for this purpose forms another improvement of this Invention. In forming the
permanent shoe, that is, when moveable toe and heel pieces are to be used, or in
the simplest form first described, an ordinary clip may be formed on the shoe at the
toe or wherever required; or a recess may be left in the under side of the shoe at
the toe hy forming a notch in the vertical plate, either on its inner or outer side,
but with interrupting its continuity, and a separate toothed clip may be applied
instead, thereby assisting in serving the purpose of fastening the shoe, as well as
preventing horizontal displacement; again such recesses or notches in the outer
side of the vertical plate may be formed all round, so as to allow the nails or toothed
clips to be applied outside the vertical plate, and thus to be removed without
interfering with the wooden sole when that is preferred. Or for the accomplish-
ment of the same purpose the horizontal plate may be formed so as to project
beyond the outer margin of the vertical plate, so as to allow a clear shelf of fully a
quarter or three eighths of an inch outside the vertical plate, which may then be
Inade very thin along the quarters, but not at the toe, through which the shanks of
the fastening nails or toothed clips are made to pass without being covered by the
wood. Again when either this last form is used, or in that first described, it is
required to have moveable metal pieces along the quarters, bevels are formed on
the inner side of the vertical plate for an inch or thereby, or along the whole length,
and correspondingly bevelled side pieces are fitted in, which by being angled are
made to rest on the ground surface of the vertical plate; and where the horizontal
plate is left shelving beyond the outer margin of this they are made to project
beyond this, so as to roof in as it were space occupied by, and thereby preserve
froin disturbance the nail heads or sheets used in fastening the toothed clips.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Whiteford in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 6th
November 1879.
JAMES WHITEFORD, of Greenock, in the County of Renfrew, North Britain,
Doctor of Medicine. IMPROVEMENTS IN SHOEING HORSES AND OTHER LIKE
FOOTED ANIMALS, AND IN SHOES OR APPLIANCES FOR SUCH PURPOSES, AND ALSO IN
MEANS OF APPLYING AND FIXING THE SAME."
My said Invention has reference to certain improvements in the construction of
shoes and in the mode and means of fixing the same to the fect of horses and like
footed animals, which improvements are more or less developements of the Invention
for which Royal Letters Patent were granted to me and dated 17th November 1877
(No. 4303), and my present improvements are designed to render such shoes more.
economical in uso and more readily applicable to the different shapes of the animals'
hoofs than those described in the Specification of the said Patent.
My improved shoe according to one modification is formed of malleabie iron,
malleable cast iron, or steel, so that it may be readily bent to suit any shape of hoof,
and comprises a horizontal plate or web of the ordinary shape of horse shoe, the
upper surface of which fits against the hoof of the horse or other animal and having
a vertical flange or feather formed all round the lower outer edge of the horizontal
plate or web and projecting down from it so that the cross section of the shoo at
any part of the sides resembles that of angle iron. This position which forms the
shoe proper or permanent part of the shoe is not intended to reach the ground
when first put on, but a thin slice or block of well seasoned wood either cross cut
or end wood, or having the fibres lying transversely, is driven or wedged into tho
shoe in one or more pieces inside the vertical flange or feather, which may be suitably
bevilled inwards at the toe and heel parts to retain it in the hollow space of the
shoe, and the wood projects down beyond the feather so that its lower surface bears
on the ground, its upper surface resting either directly on the horizontal web surface
of the shoe, or on a sheet iron plate interposed between the wood and the web and
intended to strengthen the wooden bearing sole, and protect the horse's hoof if the
wooden sole should be broken, and to give an elastic action to the tread.
In another modification of my improved shoe the metal part or shoe proper is
formed in the same manner as that first described, but angled iron or steel toe and
heel pieces or calkins are fitted to the shoe and are suitably bevilled to fit the
corresponding bevils inside the vertical feather of the shoe into which they are
dovetailed, and retained in their places by a slice or block of cross cut, end, or side
wood as before described, driven in between them, and. this wooden block may
either form the bearing sole of the shoe or the toe and heel pieces, or the calkins
may be made to project and bear on the ground, and they may be either left flat on
the lower bearing surface or sharpened chisel-shaped so as to be adapted for use in
time of frost.
In other modifications the shoe is formed with a horizontal web having an inner
and outer vertical flange or feather so as to resemble channel iron inverted, and
Bubdivided into cells by several transverse vertical feathers, and the spaces between
these flanges or feathers only may be fitted with pieces of cross cut or end wood,
leaving the central under surface of the hoof uncovered, or this might also be
covered by a slice of end or side wood, as before described. Toe pieces or calkins
and separate heel pieces or calkins may also be fitted to the shoe and may be bevilled
or semi-dovetailed and held to the shoe by the separate pieces of wood driven
firmly in between these toe and heel calkins and the inner flange or the transverse
feathers.
In the various modifications of my improved shoe the permanent shoe may be
fixed to the horse's hoofs by nails in the usual way, or by nails having screw heads,

page_text: to which nuts may be applied under the shoe for fixing it, so that it may be easily
removed without injury to the horse's hoofs; or as is preferred the shoe may be
firmly held or clamped to the hoof by means of clips of various forms hereinafter
more particularly described, which have pointed teeth or claws on their upper ends
projecting into the wall of the hoof, and these clips are fastened firmly to the shoc
by screw nuts or other suitable means. The clips may in some cases be formed
on the shoe itself and be angled inwards to suit the shape of the hoof, and the
plate or parts of the shoes on which the clips are formed may be so jointed
or made as to grip or clamp the hoof by being passed through and connected
together inside the shoe by metal bands and simultaneously acted on by means of a
hinged lever locking arrangement, or otherwise the shoe itself may be jointed
at the toe like a hunting shoc, and may be formed or fitted with angled toothed
clips which close on to the hoof when the shoe is applied and retain it firmly.
This form of shoe may also be fitted with a wooden sole, and with movable toe and
heels calkins, and the shoe may be entirely removed when desired as when the horse
is in stable.
And in order that the nature of my said Invention and the manner of performing
or putting the same into effect or practice may be properly understood, I shall now
proceed to describe the several Figures on the Sheet of explanatory Drawings
which I have hereunto appended for that purpose, the same reference letters
indicating the same or like parts where shown.
Figure 1 on the Drawings is a side elevation; Figure 2 is an inverted plan;
Figure 3 is a transvese vertical section; and Figure 4 is a longitudinal vertical
section of one modification of my improved composite horse shoe, which is formed
with a thin horizontal web a of iron or steel of suitable width to rest as shown
against the lower surface of the hoof, and having a vertical flange or feather b
formed all round and projecting down from the lower outer edge of the web a.
The vertical flange or feather 6 does not reach down to or bear on the ground at
first, but a slice of hard wood D, preferably willow, with its fibres laid transversely
in this instance (or it may be preferably cross cut or end wood) forms the bearing
sole and is fitted into the space enclosed by the vertical feather b, and retained or
dovetailed therein by means of bevil surfaces formed on the feather b at the toe and
heel parts or buttons B, B', which are made stronger, the wooden sole D being
bevilled at either end to correspond, and made in two pieces with a vertical
joint at D' for convenience of insertion into the central space. A thin sheet iron or
steel plate A may be fitted in between the wooden sole D and the web a, as seen
in Figures 3 and 4, to give additional strength to the bearing sole D and elasticity
to the tread, and which may be kneed down at the back edge to protect the
wood at A. The shoe is held to the hoof by means of fastening clips E fitted at
intervals round the shoe and having lateral projecting teeth e, e¹, formed at their
upper parts which are sunk into corresponding grooves or notches cut in the outer
crust or horn of the hoof wall.
These clips are provided with screwed shanks e³ which are passed through the
web a of the shoe, and are tightened and secured below by a small nut e¹l bearing
on a bevilled washier es, shown detached in face and edge view, Figure 18. Instead
of being fastened by the clips E described the shoe may be fixed to the hoof by
ordinary horse shoe nails or by any of the various forms of fastening clips herein-
after described.
Figure 4 shows the simplest modification of the shoe corresponding to Figure 4,
in which the vertical flange or feather 6 has no bevil formed on it at the toe and
heel part B, B', and the sole D is in one piece driven firmly into the central space
or recess formed by the flange or feather b, the iron plate or sole piece A being
bent down at the heel part so as effectually to protect the wooden sole D.
Figure 5 is a longitudinal vertical section; Figure 6 is an inverted plan; and
Figures 7 and 8, transverse vertical sections taken at the line 1--1 in Figure 6 of
another modification of my improved shoe. In this example the shoe proper or
permanent shoe A, B, remains as before described, but a toe piece C and a heel

page_text: piece of angled iron or steel are fitted to the shoe, and these are formed with
suitably bevilled outer edges to fit the corresponding bevils inside the vertical
feather b of the shoes at the toe and heel parts. These toe and heel pieces or cross
calkins C, C¹, are held firmly dovetailed in their places by the wooden sole D which
is driven in tightly between them. The heel pieces in this case a strong cross
rectangular bar or calkin C', but in Figure 8 the lower bearing surface is cut away
to form a calkin over each back end of the shoe, and both toe and heel pieces C, C¹,
may project down below the wooden sole D to form toe and heels calkins, which
may be sharpened or made chisel shaped during frost, as indicated at c, c¹, in dotted
lines in Figure 5.
Figures 9 and 10 are a longitudinal vertical section and an inverted plan
respectively, the former taken at the irregular line 2--2 in the latter; and Figure 11
is, a transverse section taken at the line 3--3 in Figure 10 showing another form of
my improved shoe in which the horizontal web a has formed on its lower edge an
outer vertical flange b similar to that on the shoes already described, an also an
inner flange b¹, which are connected together by several transverse feathers bl
dividing the space between the flanges b, b¹, into separate cells 6111 to be filled with
wood, preferably cross cut or endwood. The web a projects a little beyond the
inner flange b¹ to form a bearing surface for a wooden sole, if desired, to be inserted;
but in this form of shoe it is not generally intended to fit a central sole, the
principle of the ordinary horse shoe being retained in which the under surface of
the hoof is left uncovered. A bevilled or dovetailed calkin C is fitted in the
cell at the toe part similar to that shown in Figure 5 and 6, and heel pieces or
calkins C, C, which may be plain or sharpened for frost, as indicated in Figures 9
and 11, are fitted to the shoe as in the modification just described. And these are s
held dovetailed in their places by pieces of cross cut or end wood driven tightly in
the cells 6 between them and the transverse feathers b". The remaining spaces
or cells 6 between the outer and inner flanges b, b', are fitted with end wood
driven tightly in.
Figure 12 is a side elevation; Figure 13, an inverted plan; and Figure 14, a
longitudinal section, taken at the line 2--2 in Figure 13, of another modification of
my improved shoe of the hunting shoe type. The shoe is made in halves, which
are jointed at the toe by a pin or stud g passing through an eye or eyes formed in
each part, as seen in Figure 15, which shows the shoe open. Toothed clips E' are
formed or cast on the shoe, and these simultaneously close on and grip the hoof :
when the shoe is applied and fixed by means of the locking bars h, h, of the form
shown detached in Figure 16, the end of which pass through and are slipped into
notches or recesses in the outer feather near the heel of the shoe; and these
bars are drawn together and fix the shoe by means of a screw and nut h².
Bevilled toe and heel pieces or calkins C, C, which may be sharpened, as 4
shown in Figures 14 and 17, are also fitted to the shoe and held dovetailed
by a wooden sole D driven between them, and by the bars h, h, when screwed
up, as shown in Figures 13 and 14, the toe calkin C being additionally held
secure by bevilled snugs or projections i, i, formed on the inner surface of the
flange b at the ends of the toe piece C, and these when the shoe. is fixed close on 4
and grip the toe piece C, so that the bearing surfaces of this may be either vertical
or bevilled, as shown dotted in Figure 14. Short transverse feathers 6" are also
formed on the web a at the sides of the shoe, and the side parts b of the flanges b
between them are bevilled to retain side bearing pieces or calkins which may be
fitted thereto if desired, and be secured by the internal wooden sole D. The 5
moveable heel pieces or calkins C" are of triangular section horizontally and are
fitted as shown in Figures 14 and 17, the latter of which is a section taken on the
line 33, and they are secured in position by the locking bars h bearing against
them and the wood D, but a single rectangular bar similar to that shown in
Figure 7 may be used instead, and its extremities may be passed through the 5
vertical flange b, and the ends may be secured by a sunk head on the inner side of
the shoe and by a screw nut outside, which also locks or tightens the shoe; or this.

page_text: may be effected by any other simple 'equivalent means. The triangular form of
dovetailed calkin can also be applied to the forms of solid shoe shown in Figure
5 and 6.
In all the modifications of my improved shoes described in which a sheet iron
upper sole A. is fitted cross cut or end wood, preferably willow or other tough
fibrous wood, may form the bearing sole D, as shown particularly in Figures 4A, 5,
and 6, and in plain shoeing this sole D may project beyond the metal bearings of
the shoe in order that the fibres may open out more readily, and thereby form an
efficient friction or holding surface on the ground, and this wood in all cases must
be dry or well seasoned when inserted, so that the expansion caused by damp may
effectually secure it within the shoe.
The different forms of improved shoe, shown in Figures 1 to 11, may be fixed
to the hoof by nails in the usual way, or by nails having screwed shanks; or
separate movable iron or steel clips may be used of any of the various forms shown
full size in Figures 18 to 24 inclusive.
Figure 18 shows side and end elevations of a clip E of the kind described and
applied to the shoe, shown in Figures 1 and 3. A double set of T headed or
lateral gripping projections or teeth e, e¹, are formed at the upper end of the clip E,
the lower end or shank e² being screwed and passed through the horizontal web a
of the shoe inside the flange b, and is tightened and secured by a screw nut ell
below a bevilled washer e³ bearing against the lower surface of the web a. Figures
19 and 20 show two slightly different modifications of the former with single
T heads or lateral grippers e, the latter sharpened and projecting further into the
wall or crust of the hoof.
Figures 21 and 22 show another somo what similar form of clip, each having
single broad gripping teeth or claws e, e, projecting in from the head of the stem E
broadened out for the purpose, the latter strengthened by a feather e¹¹ which may
be sunk in the lower wall of the hoop.
Figures 23 and 24 show similar front and edge views of two modifications of
these clips, having a set of the gripping lateral teeth e projecting forwards, the
former from a thin broad flange E at the upper part of the stem e² of the clip,
while the latter shows these gripping teeth projecting from arms spread out fan-
like to form a grip or catch over a greater extended surface of the hoof than in the
former modifications, shown in Figures 18 to 22. In all these modifications the
clips are intended to be applied to notches formed in the outer crust or horn of the
hoof wall in which they are wholly or partially countersunk. The nuts e² are in
every case prevented from unscrewing by the wooden sole D or by other suitable
means.
Having thus particularly described my said Invention, and the manner in which
the same is performed, I have to state that I do not restrict myself to the precise
details herein described or delineated, but that what I believe to be novel and
original and claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein before in part
recited Letters Patent is,-
1. The construction and combination of parts forming a horse shoe held to the
animal's hoofs by means of screw clips or by nails, and having a horizontal web
and vertical feather or feathers for the insertion of wooden soles, with or without
noveable toe and heel pieces or calkins, substantially as and for the purpose herein-
before described in reference to and shown in Figures 1 to 11 of the accompanying
Drawings.
2. The construction and adaptation to a horse shoe of movable toe and heel
pieces or calkins held dovetailed by a wooden sole, so that these pieces and the
wooden sole alone require renewal at each time of shoeing, substantially as herein
before described in reference to and shown in the accompanying Drawings.
3. The construction and use of various forms of movable screw clips for fastening
shoes to the hoofs of horses and other like footed animals, substantially as herein
before described in reference to and shown in Figures 18 to 24 of the accompanying
Drawings.

page_text: 4. The general construction of a jointed shoe with a removable bearing surface
or sole of wood, and with or without movable toe and heel calkins or side calkins,
and the mode of fastening and securing such shoe by clips formed thereon or
otherwise secured thereto and by heel bars, substantially as herein before described
in reference to and shown in the accomyanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Whiteford, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Thirtieth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-nine.
JAS, WHITEFORD. (L.S.)