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Detail 1


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Silas Lamson (1776-1855) was an inventor who patented a new kind of scythe handle in 1834. Scythes are used to cut grass or grain. They have a long handle that generally was straight, but Lamson discovered that if the handle had a sharp angle in it, a worker could swing it more easily, using his body's momentum to bring a more directed force to the blade's edge. The beauty of Lamson's invention was that the handle was detachable and therefore adjustable to different body sizes and arm lengths. Lamson was quite successful with this invention, so successful he began diversifying from scythes to other blades. His original factory, in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, was diversified by the early 1850s into cutlery and other knife making. It operates in Shelburne Falls to this day.

 

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Scythe snath handle

creator   Silas Lamson
date   1834
location   Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts
length   6.0"
process/materials   wood, metal
item type   Tools/Agricultural Tools & Equipment
accession #   #2002.22.502


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See Also...

"Sharpening the Scythe"

Lamson, Goodnow and Company, Birds-Eye View

"Supplement to the New England Farmer, and Gardener's Journal"


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