Apparatus for Stamping Envelopes (open access)

Apparatus for Stamping Envelopes

Patent for "a means whereby with one motion a stamp will be supplied from the'apparatus, moistened, and placed in position upon a letter, wrapper, or parcel adapted to receive it, and wherein a number of stamps may be consecutively placed when and as desired" (lines 10-15).
Date: September 24, 1889
Creator: Helland, Hans & Matzow, Frantz
System: The Portal to Texas History
Air Compressor for Deep Well Pumps. (open access)

Air Compressor for Deep Well Pumps.

Patent for a new and improved air-compressor. This design "relates to improvements in air-compressing mechanism for the purpose of pumping for forcing from deep wells and performing similar work; and it consists in the construction and arrangement of a larger and smaller air-cylinder, and the combination therewith of mechanism to force the air from the larger into the smaller cylinder to increase the air-pressure in the latter" (lines 22-30).
Date: August 2, 1887
Creator: Adams, John R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Apparatus for Making Soap. (open access)

Apparatus for Making Soap.

Patent for a new and improved soap-making machine. This design "consist[s] of grease and soda tanks, the latter tank having a diaphragm . . . a register-tank, pipes leading from said grease and soda tanks to said register-tank, a pivoted converter, a rotary shaft in said converter and blades, a shaft journaled in uprights attached to said converter and provided with a crank and a bevel wheel, the latter gearing with a bevel-wheel on said rotary shaft in the converter, and removable furnaces for said grease tank and converter" (lines 21-32).
Date: September 20, 1887
Creator: Grant, William A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Satchel and Pillow. (open access)

Combined Satchel and Pillow.

Patent for a new and improved combined satchel and pillow. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with a valise or satchel, of an airbag permanently incorporated in the same to form one of the sides thereof, and having a mouthpiece upon the exterior of the valise, whereby the bag may be inflated without opening the valise" (lines 62-67).
Date: August 19, 1884
Creator: Kiam, Benjamin
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Tent and Bed. (open access)

Combined Tent and Bed.

Patent for improvements in the construction of a combined folding bed and tent.
Date: June 19, 1883
Creator: Perez, Mitchel
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bale Tie. (open access)

Bale Tie.

Patent for a new and improved bale tie. This design "consists of a short thin plate of metal having two tongues . . . fronting each other, said plate being pivoted at one end to the bale-hoop . . . the other end of the bale-hoop being passed under the tongues and drawn tightly around the bale, the expansion of the bale on the hoop causes the respective ends to pull on the respective ends of the tie-plate . . . so as to grip the edges of the end passed between the tongues and hold it firmly" (lines 7-19).
Date: July 24, 1883
Creator: Arnold, Abbott
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark-Arrester. (open access)

Spark-Arrester.

Patent for the "construction of a spark-arrester adapted to the smoke-stack of any locomotive" (lines 12-13) detailing a new and better combination and arrangement of plates and screens.
Date: February 10, 1880
Creator: Wiggin, John E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark-Arrester. (open access)

Spark-Arrester.

Patent for concepts and designs used to improve performance of Spark-Arresters used in the smoke stacks of locomotives with illustrations and instructions.
Date: April 6, 1880
Creator: Wiggin, John E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Car-Coupling. (open access)

Car-Coupling.

Patent for "construction and arrangement of arrow-shaped draw-heads and lever-bars adjustable upon rack-bars for the purpose of raising and lowering the draw-heads" (lines 16-20)including instructions and illustrations.
Date: April 20, 1880
Creator: Gray, John D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Amalgamator. (open access)

Amalgamator.

Patent for a new and improved amalgamator. This design "consists in placing in the bottoms of the chambers a number of iron balls or other suitable-shaped pieces of amalgamated iron, which have sufficient room to move freely among themselves, and then forcing up through the balls or pieces of iron, in contradistinction to forcing it down over their tops, the amalgamated ore and water, so as to cause the pieces of iron to vibrate, and thus to grind and break the pieces of quartz passing up through them" (lines 14-24).
Date: September 12, 1882
Creator: Schmidt, Erich Franz & Streernwitz, William Henry
System: The Portal to Texas History
Insect-Destroyer. (open access)

Insect-Destroyer.

Patent for "improvement in machines for destroying bugs and worms that infest cotton and other plants" (lines 8-10), including instructions and illustrations.
Date: January 31, 1888
Creator: Webb, Thomas H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Insect-Powder Duster (open access)

Insect-Powder Duster

Patent for "a truck mounted upon wheels, to the reat end of which is adjusted a sifter that, as the machine is progressing, will have lateral reciprocating motion imparted thereto and eject powder through an attached meshed screen" (lines 10-15).
Date: April 23, 1889
Creator: Glover, Charles Bazel
System: The Portal to Texas History
Valve-Gear for Engines. (open access)

Valve-Gear for Engines.

Patent for "a new and useful improvement in Steam-Engine Valve-Gears." The invention consists in "combining with a crank-shaft and a valve-shaft a lever, shaft, and two friction-wheels" (lines 4-9)
Date: July 6, 1880
Creator: Josserand, Peter
System: The Portal to Texas History
Life Raft. (open access)

Life Raft.

Patent for boat state rooms that convert into life rafts.
Date: September 9, 1884
Creator: Adams, John R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Machine for Welding Tubes. (open access)

Machine for Welding Tubes.

Patent for a new and improved machine for welding tubes. This design "has relation to machines for welding flues; and it consists in the improved construction and combination of operative parts" (lines 22-25).
Date: August 29, 1882
Creator: Charlton, James
System: The Portal to Texas History
Lubricator. (open access)

Lubricator.

Patent for a new and improved lubricator. This design "relates to improvements in that class of lubricators wherein the oil reservoir or vessel is provided with a discharge-pipe passing through the bottom to the point of delivery, and rising within the reservoir to near its top, the steam rising in such pipe condensing and falling by gravity to the bottom of the reservoir, thus displacing the oil, and causing it to rise and flow down through the pipe to the parts to be lubricated" (lines 8-17).
Date: March 4, 1884
Creator: Bissett, Jean
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wire Stretching Device for Fence Posts. (open access)

Wire Stretching Device for Fence Posts.

Patent for a new and improved wire stretcher. This design consists in "[t]he combination of a fence-post, the coupled pulleys mounted thereon and adapted to be simultaneously rotated, independent fence-wires extending in opposite directions and attached to one of the pulleys at points thereon that are arranged close together, and binding-sleeves for preventing the rotation of the pulleys after the wires have been stretched" (lines 14-21).
Date: March 16, 1886
Creator: Priday, Henry
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wheel Hub. (open access)

Wheel Hub.

Patent for a new and improved wheel hub. This design consists "[i]n a sectional hub, each spoke-socket having a separate side opening closed by a plate [that] fit[s] into an annular groove . . . of the cylinder . . . and [is] held by bolts passing between the tenons of spokes, to allow each spoke to be separately reached and tightened by a wedge under the end of its tenon" (lines 59-65). This "obviate[s] the necessity of removing the wheel-tire for replacing a broken spoke with a new one" (lines 7-9).
Date: December 14, 1880
Creator: Oualline, Edward Napoleon
System: The Portal to Texas History
Treasure Box. (open access)

Treasure Box.

Patent for a new and improved lock-box. This design "is provided with means for giving an alarm when an attempt is made to enter the same; and it also has a device for clamping it to the berth or other part of the apartment in which the traveler lodges, so that when the alarm sounds he [or she] is awakened, and thus notified at an attempt at robbery. The device is especially adapted to be clamped to the inner-face of a bed-rail, adjacent to the mattress thereof, so that it cannot be reached without awakening the traveler" (lines 21-31).
Date: July 13, 1886
Creator: Hayes, Elbert Newton & Sauer, Venant August
System: The Portal to Texas History
Station-Indicator (open access)

Station-Indicator

Patent for "an apparatus which will indicate to the passengers of railway or street cars when the car is approaching, standing at, or leaving a station, the station or street name, distance from the last station passed or to the next station, or any point upon the line that may be desired, and wherein all of the above data may be displayed simultaneously or any one or more items" (lines 10-18).
Date: October 23, 1888
Creator: Helland, Hans & Matzow, Frantz
System: The Portal to Texas History
Tongs. (open access)

Tongs.

Patent for new and improved tongs. This design "relates to certain devices for preventing the legs of tongs from twisting, overlapping, or becoming cross-legged. This is a common fault in almost all tongs when the joint wears a little loose, and is entirely overcome and prevented by [this] invention" (lines 19-24).
Date: April 29, 1884
Creator: Wood, William E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Manufacture of Soap. (open access)

Manufacture of Soap.

Patent for a new and improved soap-making process. This process "consist[s] in applying hydraulic pressure to the mass undergoing mixture and steam-heating . . . [and] thoroughly mixing the ingredients . . . in a close vessel by means of rotary blades, heating the same by steam, and at the same time applying pressure by means of a hydraulic pump to the said mixture" (lines 86-95).
Date: December 15, 1885
Creator: Grant, William A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Process of Curing Moss (open access)

Process of Curing Moss

Patent for invention relates to new and improved process of curing Spanish moss object of the invention being to shorten the time here to fore deemed necessary to properly cure the moss, second to obtain a larger percentage of higher grades of fiber will not be injured but will appear in a sound healthy condition, and fourth to so treat the moss that any desired grade of fiber may be obtained. [5-15]
Date: April 17, 1887
Creator: Lottman, Charles F.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Plow. (open access)

Plow.

Patent for a new and improved plow. This design "relates to double-mold-board plows, such as lister or middle-breaking plows. Its principle features are the depressed center bar, the removable point upon the center bar, and the removable shares" (lines 8-12).
Date: May 28, 1889
Creator: Tebbetts, Lewis B.; Pope, Charles H. & Stewart, John A.
System: The Portal to Texas History