Two parts reliant on each other, the forge and bellows were the fire-breathing heart of Headlie Taylor’s (1883-1957) blacksmith workshop. To heat metal to the point it became malleable enough to shape, Taylor would have heated this forge to temperatures greater than 1100°C with the help of the bellows. With each pump of the bellows, […]
Hammer held aloft, the man prepares to bear down on the hot metal. He strikes it until it forms the shape of a cog which fits like a puzzle piece into his new invention. Over thirteen months, Melbourne sculptor Paul Smits skilfully captured this moment in this bronze sculpture for the Headlie Taylor Header Museum, […]
Those familiar with Headlie Taylor (1883-1957) might feel inspired upon entering his humble blacksmith workshop. The building was originally constructed by his parents as part of their family farm, ‘Emerald Hill’ near Henty in southern NSW, in 1880. Emblematic of farm buildings of the time, the functional shed had an earth floor while the pole […]
In 1911, Headlie Taylor (1883-1957) was ready to build the machine of his dreams. Having taught himself the skills to make his famous Header Harvester, Taylor co-opted the family blacksmith shop to begin his work. This shed had been built by his father in the 1880s, about the time the family purchased their property near […]
Think of running your fingers through your hair and this is the simple idea behind the Headlie Taylor’s crop lifter. It has been claimed that this invention not only saved the bumper 1920 Australian wheat crop but secured the reputation of the Taylor Header Harvester in the process. Patented in 1917, early designs were made […]
Inspiration comes from many places. Sometimes an object’s story is much bigger than simply what it is or did. Hinting at what inspired Headlie Taylor’s (1883-1957) innovative agricultural inventions, this comb also reveals the story of the dynamic Henty community the designer was a part of. This comb is known as a short comb, most […]
Headlie Taylor (1883-1957) was a great designer and innovator who, by 1915, had created the machine of his dreams. He just needed a manufacturer and finance to fully realise his ambitions. In January 1916, Australia’s biggest agricultural industrialist Hugh Victor McKay couldn’t make Headlie’s initial demonstration on the Taylor farm, so a follow up visit […]
Along with the forge, the anvil was the most important tool in the blacksmith’s kit. Using the anvil, hot metal was ‘worked’. It was repeatedly hammered and shaped around its angled and conical edges. Imagine the loud clanging blow of a hammer forming the metal, while the whoosh of bellows pumped air into the forge […]
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