Axe
Axes, perhaps the first all-purpose tools, date back some 400,000 years, before the discovery of fire. Made originally from crudely chipped stones, the axe eventually evolved into the flint hand variety of the Old Stone Age, or Paleolithic period. Primitive axes of this type were commonly used for killing animals, cutting meat, and fashioning other tools from flint--a hard, yet versatile, siliceous rock.
By 30,000 b.c., wooden hafts, or handles, were added to flint axes. Around 4000 b.c., axe heads were being molded of copper, which was replaced over time by bronze, iron, and steel. Heads were originally attached to handles by a variety of means, none of which ensured lasting durability; eventually, axe heads were specially formed with large openings called eyes to allow custom fitting of handles.
During the Medieval Age the axe became a valuable agricultural tool, indispensable for the clearing of forests. It was also used for military purposes in the form of the battle-axe, for hand-to-hand combat.
More recently, particularly in the United States, the axe was prized for its many uses in settling frontier wilderness. Because it was employed to fell trees and build log homes, the axe became a prominent symbol of westward expansion.
Early pioneers arriving in America brought with them heavy English and German axes, carryovers from older styles used in war. American conditions brought a need for a newer, lighter axe shape and better manufacturing procedures.
Two New England hardware store owners who took advantage of the situation were brothers Samuel and David Collins. During the 1830s they bought an old gristmill and converted its wheel, once used for grinding, to drive huge triphammers and furnace bellows. Large grindstones, six feet (1.8 m) in diameter, were used to shape the blades. Instead of the old bellows system, air for the forges was carried by a series of hollow chestnut pipes from a huge wooden pump driven by a water wheel. Pioneers began using charcoal rather than coal to fire their furnaces because the coal provided higher temperatures. From iron ore imported from Sweden they made their own steel, which was used for the bit (cutting edge) of the axe. The steel was then fitted between two iron strips that formed an eye for the handle.
Pioneering manufacturing procedures were advanced for their time. A Collins workman could temper and forge eight axes per day due to improved conditions in the plant and the ingenuity of Elisha King Root, who invented and refined special machines that could stamp and sharpen the axes. One of his machines could forge the axe blade in a standardized shape so that it could be fitted to prepunched holes in the axe handle.
The new American tools were so good that a British company tried to imitate them, but lost to the Collins Brothers in a court case. This litigation represented a great victory for the fledgling American manufacturing industry. Although several varieties of American axes existed at the time, nearly all featured curved, lightweight handles and heavier heads for easier swinging and increased power. The design of the head was the true innovation of the American axe; because of the nearly equal weight of the bit and the poll (flat edge), the new axe offered superior balance and accuracy.
By the 1880s the crosscut saw had all but replaced the axe for tree-cutting. During the twentieth century, chainsaws and automatic log-splitters have become the preferred tools. Nonetheless, specialty axes, such as the fireman's axe and the logging axe, are still used today, as are the descendants of the early American axes, which remain effective tools for chopping and splitting wood.In addition, specialized axes designed for ice and mountain climbing are sold.
This is the complete article, containing 608 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).
