Hay Knife, circa 1885
Add to SetSummary
Farm families cut and cured enough grass each summer to make hay to feed their livestock all winter. Stored hay settled over time and farmers used special knives to cut out chunks for feed. Daison E. Haskell's invention added a hinged footrest to the shaft of a knife. Farmers stepped on Haskell's pedal and forced the cutting edge deeper into the haystack. This hay knife resembles Henry O. Turner's 1878 design.
Farm families cut and cured enough grass each summer to make hay to feed their livestock all winter. Stored hay settled over time and farmers used special knives to cut out chunks for feed. Daison E. Haskell's invention added a hinged footrest to the shaft of a knife. Farmers stepped on Haskell's pedal and forced the cutting edge deeper into the haystack. This hay knife resembles Henry O. Turner's 1878 design.
Artifact
Hay knife
Date Made
circa 1885
Creators
Place of Creation
United States, New York, Cazenovia
Creator Notes
Patented design by Daison E. Haskell, Cazenovia, New York
On Exhibit
at Greenfield Village in Soybean Lab Agricultural Gallery
Object ID
00.4.1358
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford.
Material
Wood (Plant material)
Iron (Metal)
Steel (Alloy)
Dimensions
Width: 9 in
Length: 49 in
Depth: 5.5 in
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