Phoenix Shoe Rises from a Stump

Decades ago, a horseshoe was hung on a limb of a small elm tree in Langlade County, Wis., and forgotten. As time passed, the shoe disappeared as the tree grew around it. The shoe reemerged when the tree was cut down more than 40 years later. The find was donated by Frank Piotrozkowski to the Langlade County Historical Society Museum in Antigo, Wis.

Image: Jeff Cota

While little is known about the three-quarter fullered horseshoe, American Farriers Journal asked Steve Kraus, Cornell University’s head of Farrier Services, about his observations.

“It’s a manufactured shoe with a worn down toe grab and a slight dimple where a toe clip was,” says the International Horseshoeing Hall of Fame member. “The wide section and finished crease resemble a Phoenix shoe. With a toe grab, it probably has turned heel calks so the horse could work in the woods. It likely had been in the crotch of that tree for a long time.”

Image: Jeff Cota

The stump and shoe remain on display at the museum.

Source: Langlade County Historical Society Museum, Antigo, Wis.; Steve Kraus