What did nails look like in the 1920s and 30s?

Shawn97 · Jun 30, 2013

cole in mo. · Jun 30, 2013

Tore down several old buildings and barns that had square nails, a little more pointed at the end, but still square.

D7fever · Jun 30, 2013

like they do today... only used square nails for
flooring

Anonymous-0 · Jun 30, 2013

A lot more dirt under 'em, back then!

shaun wallace · Jun 30, 2013

Tore down house that some fire damage and city condemed it. Company work for bought lot and wanted house off. I was needing some lumber so bid on tear down and got it. Had same nails that we use today. Had knob and tube wiring. Found newspaper that had Christmas ads for 1929 glued in a closet and some boards with mens names and lumber company on them.

Anonymous-0 · Jun 30, 2013

they are the same as now as in 1920 ,,forged square nails go back 150 yrs or more,,. Thomas Jefferson had a nail shop that forged and hammered out nails ...modern square nails in floors are stacked together and go through a power nailer ,, such nailers have been around a hundred yrs.. my grandfather built his home in 1908,,. sadly , my mother wanted to go back to the homeplace to see the house , since it burned down recently ..I piked up serveral large spike nails for keepsakes and noticed my mothers tears ,, I handed her a nail and asked mom if she knew whose hand handled that nail last ,.. she smiled ,, one is in my pencil/pen jar .

JD Seller · Jun 30, 2013

In the 1920s and 1930s the nails would have looked just like they do today. Square nails where mainly hand made. They where replaced by machine made nails in the late 1800s. By the turn of the century ,1900, almost all nails where machine made and round.

Later square nails where usually made that way for a specific reason like horse shoe nails and some flooring nails.

I have seen my Great Grand Father make square nails but it was just to show me how they where made. When he started blacksmithing in the late 1800s they would make nails when they did not have other work to do. He was a black smith's apprentice when he turned 13 years old. HE was born in 1872. So in 1885 they where still making square nails. He talked about how that was one of the first things he learned how to make. He lived until he was 96 years old. He really liked boughten nails. He said that making nails was a mind numbing job.

The older part of my house has square nails. It was build in the 1870s. The newer addition has round nails but has gas light plumbing in the walls and it was built in 1890s.

Texasmark1 · Jun 30, 2013

I tore down a turn of the century, typical farm house, 2 story, T
shaped once. Had the front and side porches. Have a bucket full of
them. Rectangular, or some might call them flat. House was so old
that the window panes had settled about 1/2" in the sills. I didn't
know glass would do that but after the fact found out it does, if old
enough.

Mark

PJH · Jun 30, 2013

The original part of our little country church, according to the church records, was built in 1918. A local preacher ran a sawmill for a living, and he donated the lumber and the nails for the building. The men of the community provided the labor. Rough sawn green oak, and square cut nails. According to the records, the nails for the entire building cost $18 in 1918. Some of them were exposed when we added on to the original structure about 8 years ago. I saved some, but I"d have to hunt to find them. The old preacher was my neighbor when I was a kid. The old timers called them "square cut nails" but the body of the nail was only square at the tip, and changed to a rectangle at the head, like they were made from a flat sheet, but cut on a taper.

jm. · Jun 30, 2013

I do not know what the nails were used for but on this place we call home there was a rather large iron ore deposit. The furnace is still intact here. The product was pig iron but right next to the furnace was a nail plant that the method was to roll the pig iron into sheets and CUT in to nails. The nails were much like what was use on horses shoes. This operation was in full swing in the early 1900s . I am sure they had round nails in that period also but know they had flat nails.

gtractorfan · Jun 30, 2013

Your question reminded me, back around 1960 when I was in high school we got to tour the Continental Steel factory at Kokomo, Ind. (pretty sure that's where it was) I remember seeing machines feeding wire in and making nails. Another thing I remember is we were told the grip lines under the head by their spacing told where the nails were made. Kind of interesting too, the "penney" of nails came about by how many pennies 100 nails cost.

farmerjohn · Jun 30, 2013

That's why they are called "cut" nails. Cut out of a sheet slightly tapered and head forged on afterward. Lots of info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nail_(fastener)

jbp · Jun 30, 2013

The house I was born and still live in was built in 1892. The nails used in it look just like the nails you buy today. Houses a few years older though have the cut nails. An old crib I wrecked a couple of years ago used hand hewn beams with mortised and tendon joints with hicory pegs to hold the frame together. The boxing was held on with cut nails.

I have two nephews and one neice who are great at furniture making that have made each family member a piece of furniture from this old barn lumber. Joe

David G · Jun 30, 2013

I would agree with JDP, I think the transition to round nails was in the 1880's. I tore the second house down that was on my property, it was built in 1850's and had mortice/tenon with pins. The first house was a log cabin built in 1833, I have not found any remnants of it.

What did nails look like in the 1920s and 30s?

Shawn97

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cole in mo.

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D7fever

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Anonymous-0

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shaun wallace

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