harness instead of yokes

[CharlyBonifaz]

seeing an old harness with surprisingly high attached traces hanging in the darkest corner of the B.C.Museum in Victoria, B.C., I started to wonder if anyone knew old pictures from the northamerican continent, where oxen pulled with harnesses instead of yokes? Seems to me I have run only across pictures with headyokes and neckyokes …

[carl ny]

Yes,I have seen them. Once in a while as a team but usually as a single. Might see some pictures in Rural Heritage magazine.I didn’t see any in the last couple but I know I’ve seen them.Saw a single at our county fair this year.. carl

[CharlyBonifaz]

it was a three-dimensional capable harness with a loose leather-connection at its top and as mentioned very high traces; the top would also have been constructed wrong for equines: open and higher to the rear instead of front as is neccessary for horses
may be the pictures can help?

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[carl ny]

I,m not an oxen person but that looks about right to me.When I saw the one at the fair I really didn’t pay much attention to how it was made,I guess I should have.

carl ny

[carl ny]

I just googled “oxen harness”and there is a lot there. Looks like that is what you have.

carl ny

[carl ny]

Also,If you follow this oxen forum back you will find a lot of information.If I remember right,back on page 24 or 25 there was a post by Carl Russell that had a lot of information about ox harness. HTH

carl ny

[dominiquer60]

From what I know Oxen in Harness were common out in the Great Plains of the USA and Canada. There are quite a few examples if you search. There are also a lot of facebook pictures and conversation about the subject on the Ox pages. It may have been because altering a harness to meet an Ox’s needs was easier than finding the right stick of wood to make a yoke. For me the yoke is easy, but that is what I am used to.

Erika

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