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CIVIL WAR ERA 1860 WILLIAMS’ PATENT CURB BIT – A
VERY RARE FULLY FUNCTIONAL SPECIMEN IN THE ORIGINAL
CONFIGURATION:
W.F.M. Williams of Augusta,
Georgia was granted U.S. Patent No. 26,804 on January
10, 1860, for a unique system of levers that were
designed to replace
the standard cheek pieces
on a curb bit. Williams initially intended that his
design be adapted to existing bit designs, however from
the few extent Williams which have been located, his
design resulted in a new proprietary bit pattern.
As Williams wrote in his patent description, “This
invention consists in a combination of lever powers, so
arranged as to operate on one or both jaws, (upper and
lower) at the discretion of the reins man.”
While no written record has been found that indicates
this design was ever adopted by the Ordnance Department
for trial or as a standard feature for U.S. Army Bits,
bits that incorporate the Williams patent – including
the bit offered here - do exist which are reminiscent of
the 1840’s – 1850’s Mays Pattern Dragoon Curb Bits and
the Model 1859 Cavalry Curb Bits. These standard army
bits are similar in pattern to known Williams Bits in
the profile of the upper cheek piece, the design of the
bridle billet eye, and the boss swell of the cheek
pieces where the mouth piece is attached. An example of
a Williams Bit bearing a version of the army’s brass
bosses is pictured below, a bit which was issued to
Company D of the Regiment of Mounted Riflemen.
There is no doubt Williams’ design was harsh, and like
the Model 1859 Cavalry Ring Curb Bit, the potential of
the levers of this bit abusing the horse’s mouth is very
apparent. However, viewed in the context of the times,
when young, inexperienced cavalry soldiers were mounted
on green horses, both of which had received minimal
training, and that they were then thrown into the chaos
of the battlefield, it is easier to understand why these
bits were considered necessary.
While likely to cause any responsible modern horse owner
to regard 19TH Century horsemen as
unnecessarily cruel, it is worth considering that the
horses provided to the army were for the most part wild
animals when delivered to the remount depots. The depots
had very limited time to break and train the mounts
before they were shipped out to meet the critical needs
of the cavalry regiments serving in the field. Assuming
that the remounts were even so much as “green broke”
before being handed over to the regiments might be
overly generous. I imagine it was a case of “any” horse
was better than no horse at all, leaving the final
training and finishing of the mount to the individual
soldier.
The other factor which bears noting is reflected in an
original printing of a U.S. Army document in my
collection. General Order No. 105, published by the War
Department in August of 1862 and authored by Assistant
Adjutant General E. D. Townsend, states:
“The inspection of all cavalry forces, preparatory to
their being mustered into the service of the United
States, shall hereafter comprise, in addition to the
usual personal examination, a test of horsemanship, to
be made under the direction of the mustering officer;
and no person shall be mustered into the cavalry service
who does not exhibit good horsemanship and a practical
knowledge of the ordinary care and treatment of horses.”
Apparently this was a significant problem or the army
would not have addressed it with a General Order.
The wide spread assumption held by modern collectors and
students of history – probably fostered by the images
from the silver screen – is that 19TH Century
men and women were at least familiar with horses, if not
accomplished riders. They MUST all have been
early iterations of John Wayne, Ward Bond, Roy Rogers
and James Arness. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Then as now, managing a saddled horse or for
that matter, a horse, mule or ox harnessed to a wagon,
was an acquired skill necessitated by access to the
animal and adequate training. If a young man was raised
on a ranch or a farm, he probably gained sufficient
experience to be a competent cavalry or light artillery
soldier. Conversely, if he was raised in a large city
such as New York or Atlanta, he was no more likely to
become a skilled horseman than his modern counterpart is
certain to learn to be a competent driver. More than a
few New Yorkers I’ve known through the years own neither
a driver’s license nor a vehicle – no need. And so it
was the case for the 19Th Century recruits
from the large urban areas – their first exposure to
caring for and riding horses may very well have been
when the soldier joined his regiment.
With these two factors in mind, the design of this bit
bears consideration in the context of the realities of
those times. The dramatic growth of the armies in
response to the outbreak of hostilities in 1861, and the
lack of training resources to handle the overwhelming
influx of recruits certainly resulted in brief, and at
times, inadequate, training for troopers and horses
alike. Thus, the need for these severe bits employed
during the war years is understandable as compensation
for these shortcomings.
William’s design incorporated separate upper and lower
cheek pieces, departing from the standard bit design of
having a cheek piece forged from a single piece of
metal. The lower cheek pieces attached to a second
mouth piece (see F, Patent drawing below). When the
reins were relaxed, the two mouth pieces rested together
as a single bar in the horse’s mouth. As the reins were
gathered, the lower cheek pieces were pushed through the
guides in the upper cheek pieces, raising the second
mouth piece off of the fixed mouth piece, pressing the
second mouth piece into the roof of the horse’s mouth,
while the fixed mouth piece pressed on the bars of the
lower jaw, exerting a considerable amount of pressure on
the horse’s mouth.
The bit illustrated in the patent drawing, and all of
the examples of this bit which have been examined, are
equipped with two sets of rein rings – one at the lower
end of each cheek piece and one at each junction of the
mouth piece and the cheek pieces. Assuming these bits
were used with two sets of reins, the upper set of reins
and rings may have been intended to provide a milder
alternative to the severe degree of control exerted by
the lower cheek pieces when that set of reins were
tightened.
This Williams Bit obviously was affected by exposure
over the years to the elements. While I do not believe
it is a battlefield relic – having been buried – it is
quite likely that it hung unattended in a barn or shed.
The surfaces of the cheek pieces are uniformly pitted as
are the rein rings. On the other hand, the two piece
curb bar has no pitting at all, retaining an overall
smooth surface. The difference in condition is most
likely attributed to the difference in the quality and
carbon content of the iron used to fashion the
individual components. The cheek pieces are full form
with no misshaping, all four rein rings are intact and
the upper rein rings turn freely in their ports, the
lower bar is intact, and the sliding lever side bars are
fully functional, sliding smoothly through the
corresponding guides in the upper cheek piece. The
upper cheek pieces are both punched with a pair of holes
for mounting the decorative brass bosses such are
featured on the Mounted Rifleman’s Bit pictured below –
suggesting that this particular bit was manufactured to
the standards of the current issue of military bits and
intended to be used by a cavalryman.
This is only the second Williams Bit I have had the
opportunity to handle, and one of only three that I know
to exist. I doubt they were produced in any great
numbers given that they were a deviation from the norm,
introduced immediately before the nation’s resources –
North and South - were taxed to their limits with
providing the basic military equipment on the eve of the
Civil War. No doubt, at least some of the William Bits
saw service during the war, quite possibly on both
sides, and yet there are very few surviving examples.
Despite the obvious signs of aging, this is a fully
functional and overall respectable example of the very
rare Williams Patent Curb Bit.
SOLD
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