Dart Otto Bybee's Branding Iron

This is Dart Otto Bybee’s personal branding iron that he used on his horses and cows. The markings on the brand are a “D” and an “O” and a quarter circle underneath the two letters. The D.O. stands for Dart Otto. “Brands are registered like trademarks or copyrights and are monitored, taxed and regulated. So if an owner failed to pay the brand tax, the brand could no longer be offered as “evidence of ownership”’ (Stamp).          

Dart Otto Bybee's Branding Iron

               

The brand was passed from Dart to his daughter Darthel and her husband Frank Jensen Pike. Frank and Darthel gave the brand to their youngest son Frank Bybee Pike because out of all his siblings and cousins that worked on the farm he was the best help his grandpa had. Frank loved to help his Grandpa Bybee with the horses the most. Frank said that he helped on the farm from the time he could walk until they moved to the city. Frank also said that his grandpa was a “horse trader” and that he was always looking for a deal and that grandpa Bybee was the best trader in town.

In the 1960’s and early 70’s Grandpa Bybee put little Frank on a horse that wasn’t broken, which means it wasn’t ready to ride because it was wild, and Frank would ride it, without a saddle in a small circular coral, while his grandpa was talking to someone who was interesting in buying the horse. The horses were gentle with Frank and grandpa Bybee sold the horse and little Frank would jump off.

The brand is Folklore because it is passed on from generation to generation and Frank looks forward to passing it on to his son. The brand is also Farm Folklore because it was used to mark the horses and cattle. Each brand is original and personal and there is pride in Frank’s eyes as he tells me about the branding iron. Frank loves to tell stories about growing up on the farm. Farming and families go hand in hand, Frank and his eight siblings and numerous cousins worked on the farm every day after school and most days during the summer. “The vast array of combinations made possible by  these characters and variations ensures that unique and identifiable brands can be created –hopefully without repetition– using only limited formal language” (Stamp).

Smithsonian.com

      

A few accepted variations on the letter A. From left to right: Crazy-A, Flying-A, Lazy-A, Walking-A (image: Texas Brand Registration) 

Works Cited

Stamp, Jimmy. Decoding the Range: the Secret Language of Cattle Branding. Smithsonian.com.          30 Apr. 2013. Access 15 Feb. 2015. Web.