The presence of wire nails in a North American context probably
represents a date no earlier than the last two decades of the
19th century and, consequently, can be used by the historical
archaeologist or restorationist to identify recent, altered or
contaminated contexts in a site.
The technology or wire-nail manufacture was known and used in
parts of Europe from the early 19th century but its arrival and
use in North America was delayed until after the middle of the
century and the general acceptance of wire nails for building
construction came only during the last two decades of the century.
By the end of the 19th century the production of wire nails in
North America greatly exceeded that of cut nails.
The term wire nail applies to both the present day machine-made
nail using wire stock and earlier nails which used wire stock
but may not have been made entirely with the use of machines.
The technology for wire nails apparently originated in France
early in the 19th century. It is interesting to note that the
early technology for the manufacture of pins from wire with a
wound head, dating back to the 16th century, was not transferred
to the manufacture of nails although the present day manufacture
of nails and pins bear some resemblance to each other. Fremont
lists French patents for wire nails beginning in 1806 and including
at least seven up to 1825. Among these early patents is one registered
in 1811 by James White, an American resident of Paris, for a machine
which would cut head and point a nail in one operation. The French
origin for wire nails is also reflected in their being referred
to as “French nails” or “pointes de Paris”.
To some extent the early manufacture of wire nails may have been
little more than the transfer of hand-forging techniques from
bar stock to wire stock. This type of manufacture is described
briefly by Laboulaye and elsewhere. Fremont states that the first
industrial production of wire nails in France began in 1819, although
not using the machine patented by White which is characterized
as being better known for its ingenuity then its strength and
not capable of withstanding the rigorous demands of continuous
production. By 1840 machine made wire nails were being produced
by a number of Paris manufacturers and wire nail machines were
being exhibited at the Paris Exhibitions of 1844 and 1855 and
at the London Exhibition of 1851. The machine exhibited in 1844
is also illustrated by Laboulaye, and consists of a relatively
sophisticated hand-cranked apparatus which cut, headed and pointed
a nail from a coil of wire by a turn of the crank.
Improvements in wire-nail technology during the first half of
the 19th century appear to have been restricted to continental
Europe. References on the introduction of wire nail manufacture
to North America generally attribute it to French or German technologists
and machines. British patents for wire nails did not appear until
the 1850’s. Even at the end of the 19th century a British
dictionary still considered it appropriate to state that “there
are three leading distinctions of iron nails as respects the modes
of manufacture, wrought, cut, and cast”.
The beginning of wire nail manufacture in North America is often
given as 1851 and is attributed to William Hassall or Thomas Morton
or Adolph Browne. It has also been given as 1870 and attributed
to the pillow and Hersey Manufacturing Company of Montreal and
it is claimed by M. Baackes of Cleveland that he established “the
first mill for the manufacture of wire nails on this side of the
Atlantic” at Covington, Kentucky in 1875.
The association of early production in North America with the
use of wire nails in building construction is probably limited.
It is generally noted that the early types of wire nail were small
and intended for such uses as cigar boxes, furniture or upholstering.
The rise of the wire nail for building construction is a feature
of the last quarter of the 19th century. At the beginning of this
period Knight could say little more than “chests and boxes
from the continent of Europe and from Asia are found to be fastened
with nails of this character”. Slightly later, Benjamin
stated that wire nails “are well suited for, and principally
used in, the construction of packaging cases of willow or other
soft woods which grow so abundantly on the continent”. Late
in the century Smith could still state, possibly erroneously,
that their manufacture was “mainly carried on by Continental
firms”. According to Swank “the wire nail as a substitute
for the cut nail did not, however, come into notice in this country
until…1883 or 1884”, based on information provided
by the American Wire Nail Company.
Very great difficulty was experienced in inducing the hardware
trade to recognize the wire brad and wire nail as a salable commodity.
From 1878 to 1880 the growth of the wire nail was very slow and
was attended with many difficulties. Deep rooted prejudices of
all kinds had to be overcome. It was not until the year 1883 or
1884 that the wire nail came into the market prominently as a
competitor of the cut nail.
Another factor which delayed the spread of wire nails was the
cost of raw material. Until 1879 it was necessary to use the more
expensive Norway iron to produce a suitable product. In 1879 only
two manufacturers were advertising wire nails in the “standard
hardware trade journal, the Iron Age”. The first mention
of wire for nails in the indices of American patents appears in
1877.
By the late 1880’s the situation had changed considerably
and it could be stated that Nails of a very different kind, manufactured
from steel wire, have been in use for a number of years in America
and for a longer period in Europe, and in both places they have
been favorably received and are fast superceding the common cut
nails for many purposes. The advantages of these over the cut
nails are many. For the same amount of metal they are much stronger;
they can be driven into thin boards without splitting them, and
can be removed without leaving so unsightly a hole as is usually
made by common nails. Besides this, on account of their superior
stiffness they can be driven into very hard wood, where much caution
is necessary if common nails are to be used. They are also more
easily produced and are handled with less labor.
Tests conducted in 1884, at the Watertown Arsenal, demonstrated
the superior holding power of cut nails over wire nails but the
relative cheapness, ease of handling and variety of wire nails
prevailed and the wire nail came to dominate the production of
nails in North America before the end of the 19th century. In
1886 the North American production of cut nails totaled over eight
million kegs and that of wire nails over half a million; in 1890
the totals were over five and a half million kegs for cut nails
and over three million for wire nails; in 1900 the total for cut
nails had declined to slightly over one and a half million kegs
while that for wire nails had risen to over seven and a quarter
million, and by 1913 the total for cut nails was less than one
million and that for wire nails almost thirteen million. A problem
of rusting on wire shingling nails apparently did not pose any
long term threat to the wire nail industry.
In the interpretation of wire nails from a site the question
of availability must also be given some consideration. The fact
that a technology was developed at a certain time in history does
not necessarily mean that its products were immediately available
or used at a specific site. Problems of trade, economics, tradition,
prejudice or other similar reasons would prolong the use of cut
nails and retard the acceptance of wire nails. A similar situation
existed in the transition from wrought to cut nails earlier in
the 19th century.
From the preceding it should be evident that wire nails were
produced during much of the 19th century, although not necessarily
in North America, but it is unlikely that they would appear in
North America in the context of building construction until the
last two decades of the 19th century. The wire nails from a site
should be considered in terms of their quantity and likely use
and the local situation of supply and acceptance. The presence
of relatively small quantities of small sizes which cold have
been used in packing crates, small chests, cigar boxes, upholstering,
and other similar purposes would not preclude the possibility
of an early date, after approximately 1820. Such articles would
likely also be imports using European produced nails. However,
the presence of larger quantities of wire nails suitable for building
construction should be considered as probably representing a date
after about 1880 when the use of wire nails for such applications
became generally acceptable in North America. This date would
also be adjusted by historical information on local availability
and acceptance.
