PBS
Pbs: New Perspectives on the West
This in-depth resource presents a history of the American West from pre-Columbian times until World War I with profiles, documents, and images. It encourages visitors to link these into patterns of historical meaning for themselves....
Other
Selected Essays on Barbed Wire: Brief History of Barbed Wire
Provides information on the development and use of barbed wire. Includes biographies on Joseph F. Glidden, Jacob Haish, and Isaac L. Ellwood, who were instrumental in its invention and marketing. For more information on barbed wire,...
Other
Glidden Homestead: Barbed Wire: The Saga
Read the story of barbed wire, see a copy of the patent filed by Joseph F. Glidden, and find out why it was such an important invention for farmers.
US National Archives
Nara: Teaching With Documents: Glidden's Patent Application for Barbed Wire
This article from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), describes how barbed wire was important for ranchers in the West in the 1800s and how Joseph Glidden improved the original patent for barbed wire.
PBS
Pbs the West: Joseph Farwell Glidden
Information about the Illinois farmer who improved fencing the plains that led to the demise of open-range cattle ranching. Glidden is credited with the invention of barbed wire.