My 89 ford bronco will not crank!?!?!?

I have a 89 ford bronco Eddie Bower edition that was running fine until the other day. I recently put a new battery in the vehicle and the lights and everything else still work great when I turn the key but when I go to crank the engine nothing happens, no clicks no nothing, just silence. I have noticed under the vehicle that there are wires stripped apart going from transmission to the transfer case but they have been like that for a while and never caused any trouble before... anyone have any ideas as to what the heck is going on? and if so how can I fix it?