African Top Bar Hives - bit of history

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Always some discussion about who 'invented' the Kenyan (African) top bar hive and indeed where it was concieved. Doing a bit of tidying up in the library and browsing through a few of my Africa books I read this in the introduction page of 'The Tropical Agriculturalist - Beekeeping' book, published in 2006 with assistance from IBRA.
Peter Paterson is (was?) a beekeeping consultant based in Nairobi, his father had been Director of Medical Services in Kenya and his mother a keen beekeeper and it was during a chat over coffee with Eva Crane and Jack Tredwell of Sparsholt college at the 1964 National Honey show that the concept took form.
Paterson worked with John Cosburn over the design of the hive and the prototype was tested at Sparsholt College.
I recall some comment on here as to the hive being invented in Canada, I think that misconception came from the fact that Paterson received a lot of help from the Canadian International Development Agency and the University of Guelph in Ontario and did indeed spend some time with a commercial outfit in Canada learning the ropes.
It was Oxfam in Kenya that really saw the possibilities of beekeeping helping to relieve poverty and who encouraged Paterson in his work.
since then of course, the Kenyan top bar hive has spread all over sub Saharan Africa and local adaptations have developed - in Tanzania the Tanzanian Top Bar has lost tapered sides which only served as a nod towards bee space and followed the catenary formation of the comb, in reality it saved little wood. The Tanzanian TBH usually has the entrance on the long side of the hive, not the ends, and can either be towards the end or slap bang in the middle, the end entrance ones are now becoming more popular, as well as a fixation for engineering in a wire mesh queen excluder, which is fairly pointless and we are trying to discourage the fashion.
In Lesotho, they quickly renamed the KTBH the Basotho Bee Box.
Materials also vary, sawn timber can be at a premium in some places, a lot of beekeepers in Sierra Leone are now only using timber for the ends and split bamboo for the sides - using beer bottle caps as washers to stop the nails splitting through the cane, all then plastered in a mud daub to seal the cracks - other countries do the same but use a daubed basketwork sides.
Oil drums split along their length 'barbecue fashion' have also been seen.
So there we have it - Conceived at Caxton Hall in Westminster, prototype designed, built and tested in Hampshire, first successfully used in Kenya with funding and encouragement by Canada and Oxfam

 

[bingevader]

Thanks very much.

 

[pargyle]

It doesn't surprise me that Sparsholt were involved .. it was one of the few agricultural colleges that actually ran beekeeping courses .. a number of the older members of our BKA learned at least some of their beekeeping at Sparsholt and many prominent beekeepers like Clive de Bruyn spent time there. It held a prominent place in beekeeping for many years from the early part of the 20th Century ..Hampshire BKA still hold their annual convention there.

 

[Murox]

Yes thanks for the 'potted' history. I never realised that Dr. Crane was involved with its inception; she wrote so many important books and papers.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Yes thanks for the 'potted' history. I never realised that Dr. Crane was involved with its inception; she wrote so many important books and papers.

I've found out she did quite a bit of work on African beekeeping actually

 

[pargyle]

Yes thanks for the 'potted' history. I never realised that Dr. Crane was involved with its inception; she wrote so many important books and papers.

I think the coincidence and meeting of several diverse and creative beekeeping minds at the right time in the right place led to the creation of something that has assumed an importance in African beekeeping probably far beyond their original concept or expectations.

A legacy for all those involved including the agencies and organisations that saw the potential.

 

[Murox]

I think the coincidence and meeting of several diverse and creative beekeeping minds at the right time in the right place led to the creation of something that has assumed an importance in African beekeeping probably far beyond their original concept or expectations.

A legacy for all those involved including the agencies and organisations that saw the potential.

Well said.

 

[Fusion_power]

It becomes even more interesting when considered that the origin of top bar hives goes back over 2000 years to Greece. An inverted skep with sticks across the top was used. The bees built combs along the length of the sticks. Splits were made by moving half the combs into a new straw base.

Note, I'm using "skep" because it is a familiar term, the actual straw hive used in Greece was not woven the way skeps are made.