History's Best Selling Products of 1874

Make way for the hits of 1874! This remarkable era stood as a testament to the golden era of American industry and the march of first-rate items. Crowd-pleasers such as Barbed Wire shared the spotlight with mega-bestsellers The Circuit Rider and essential classics. Brought to you by top-notch makers from industry leaders like Joseph Glidden and Edward Eggleston, these trailblazing products swept main street from coast to coast as genuine top-flight hits and earned a permanent place in cultural lore. Check out the complete rank-ordered ledger below to relive the finest releases of the year.

1. Barbed Wire

   Released in 1874 by Joseph Glidden

   November 24, 1874, marks a pivotal moment in the history of the American West. On this day, the U.S. Patent Office granted Joseph F. Glidden of DeKalb, Illinois, patent number 157,124 for his 'Improvement in Wire-Fences'. This was not the first patent for barbed wire, but Glidden's design was the most practical, effective, and easily mass-produced. The patent protected his simple but ingenious method of twisting two strands of wire together to hold sharp barbs securely in place. This legal protection allowed Glidden to commercialize his invention, which would soon fence the prairies, end the open range, and forever change the face of agriculture and land ownership.

2. The Circuit Rider

   Released in 1874 by Edward Eggleston, J.B. Ford & Company

   “The Circuit Rider,” published in 1874, stands as a seminal work in American literary history, offering a vivid and idealized portrayal of the Methodist circuit riders who played a crucial role in the spiritual and social development of the American frontier. Appearing nearly a decade after the Civil War, the novel tapped into a national yearning for unifying narratives and a romanticized vision of the past. Its release in the mid-1870s coincided with a period of rapid industrialization and social change, prompting many Americans to look back at simpler, more heroic times. The book’s immediate and enduring popularity underscored its profound impact on shaping public perception of these itinerant preachers, immortalizing their arduous journeys and moral struggles in the collective consciousness as foundational figures of early American identity and expansion.