Locking Device for Baling Press Doors. (open access)

Locking Device for Baling Press Doors.

Patent for a new and improved lock for baling-press doors. This design "is to provide a . . . locking device for the doors of the baling chamber of a baling-press, which locking device is so constructed that all the doors can be locked in a single operation and by means of the same device, and may be loosened simultaneously" (lines 8-14).
Date: February 16, 1886
Creator: Clark, Frank S.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Writing Pen. (open access)

Writing Pen.

Patent for a new and improved pen. This design has for its object "to provide a simple implement which may be readily employed for writing purposes; and it consists in a thimble-like sleeve having a writing-pen arranged at its outer end, adapted to be easily applied to the index or fore-finger; and it further consists in the peculiar construction of implement" (lines 7-14).
Date: October 16, 1888
Creator: Seabaugh, Conrad
System: The Portal to Texas History
Suspenders. (open access)

Suspenders.

Patent for new and improved suspenders. This design "has for its object to provide a simple and inexpensive article of this character which will avoid the objections to the present form of suspenders" (lines 10-13). More specifically, it "consists in providing a suspender which will be attached on each side by a button or stud to the shirt near the apex of the shoulder, close to the collar-band, then bringing the ends together under the arms, and then about half-way between the arms and the top of the pantaloons, uniting the ends in a buckle of any suitable design" (lines 36-41).
Date: December 16, 1884
Creator: Stuart, John Arthur
System: The Portal to Texas History
Fan Attachment for Rocking Furniture. (open access)

Fan Attachment for Rocking Furniture.

Patent for a new and improved rocking-chair fan. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the fan-frame and fan, sleeve, cord, and the rocker, of the double clamping device for uniting the fan-frame to the rocker . . . and the connecting cord or wire" (lines 24-31).
Date: February 16, 1886
Creator: McComas, Arthur William & Fitzhugh, Alexander
System: The Portal to Texas History
Portable Fan and Operating Machinery for Same. (open access)

Portable Fan and Operating Machinery for Same.

Patent for a new and improved fan. This design "is fluted or corrugated . . . its lines of corrugation radiating from a common point. By this peculiar formation [it is] enabled to concentrate the surrounding air during its movement, and direct and carry it in a body back and forth . . . [and a] heavy bead or bar follows the zigzag or corrugated outline of the bottom of the fan, and serves as a weight to keep it tending downward toward a position of rest. . . . The frame carrying the fan is supported upon standards provided with broad footings . . . by which the fan may be readily moved" (lines 16-35).
Date: March 16, 1886
Creator: McComas, Arthur William & Fitzhugh, Henry A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Case for Eyeglasses. (open access)

Case for Eyeglasses.

Patent for a new and improved glasses case. This design "consists of a case for eyeglasses provided at the back with a pin or other device, for attaching the same to the vest or coat, said case being provided at the upper end with a retaining device that prevents the dropping of the eyeglasses from the case" (lines 11-17).
Date: September 16, 1884
Creator: Hawkes, Albert K.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bell Cord Coupling. (open access)

Bell Cord Coupling.

Patent for a new and improved bell cord coupling. This design consists in "[a] cord connecting and tension device comprising essentially a shell or tube, a spiral spring, and a pair of slotted balls arranged therein, and a flat strip having round ends adapted to slide through said balls . . . [and] a sliding spring-encircled plate provided with screw-threaded and split end portions, and nuts fitted on the latter, in combination with a tube or shell, and balls arranged in said tube" (lines 89-100).
Date: January 16, 1883
Creator: Tumey, Charles Henry
System: The Portal to Texas History