Water Cooler. (open access)

Water Cooler.

Patent for a new and improved water cooler. This design consists in "vessels, packing, cross-bars in [a] compartment, connecting tube, coiled pipe, coupling, and faucet . . . [and] the swinging bracket arranged below the faucet, and having stands for two or more glasses," as well as casing and lining (lines 1-7).
Date: March 27, 1883
Creator: Schultze, August J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wheeled Vehicle. (open access)

Wheeled Vehicle.

Patent for a new and improved wheeled vehicle. This design consists in "[a] one-wheeled sulky in which are combined the single wheel, the frame, the thills, the seat, the standards, and the rods or braces" (lines 54-57).
Date: June 19, 1883
Creator: Boyd, William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Ventilating Apparatus. (open access)

Ventilating Apparatus.

Patent for a new and improved ventilator. This design consists in "a fan casing, constructed and arranged . . . of the fan arranged therein, the gearing placed above the fan, the air-ducts leading to the fan-chamber, the endless weighted chain or cord, and drums and pulleys . . . [and] an open bottom secured to a ceiling and communicating with air-ducts passing between the floor and ceiling of a building" (lines 80-90).
Date: September 21, 1886
Creator: Garfield, John Morris
System: The Portal to Texas History
Hub Attaching Device. (open access)

Hub Attaching Device.

Patent for a new and improved arrangement of axles and boxes for vehicles. This design calls for a solid axle formed with a shoulder and screw-threads, an axle-box closed at its outer and provided at the other end with an annular wall, a collar formed with internal screw-threads, annular flange, bearing surface, wrench-gripe surfaces, and a cap or ring (lines 16-22).
Date: November 22, 1881
Creator: Warth, August
System: The Portal to Texas History
Hydraulic Excavating Machine. (open access)

Hydraulic Excavating Machine.

Patent for a new and improved hydraulic excavator. This design "consists in combining a submerged propeller-wheel with a water-jet tube having a flexible connection with the supply-pipe, so as to permit the water-jet tube to rise and fall . . . and also move laterally, whereby the tube will, when it meets an obstruction, yield sufficiently to prevent breaking, jarring, or injuring any of the parts, the water-jet tube and propeller bearing such relative positions to each other that the . . . obstructions disengaged by the jet will be held in suspension . . . and carried off by the natural current" (lines 14-27).
Date: January 15, 1884
Creator: Mansfield, Samuel M.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Process of and Machine for the Use of Compressed Air as a Motive Power (open access)

Process of and Machine for the Use of Compressed Air as a Motive Power

Patent for "a new and useful Process of Operating Locomotives by Compressed Air," (lines 6-8) including illustrations.
Date: March 16, 1886
Creator: Tull, Francis Shales; Kuehn, Herman & Beers, William Francis
System: The Portal to Texas History
Lamp Attachment. (open access)

Lamp Attachment.

Patent for a new and improved lamp attachment. This design "is to provide sewing-machine tables with lamp attachments applied in such manner as that the lamp will cast its light upon the presser-foot and needle from the back and will not obstruct the table or interfere with the work, and when not in use may be swung underneath the table out of the way" (lines 7-14).
Date: August 27, 1889
Creator: Walker, Catharine S.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark Arrester. (open access)

Spark Arrester.

Patent for a new and improved spark arrester for train smokestacks. This design is of "a locomotive-engine, a pipe or pipes for conveying sparks from the smoke-stack, in combination of a diaphragm or cone placed in the stack and a steam or water chamber placed around the discharge of said pipe or pipes" (lines 88-93).
Date: February 21, 1882
Creator: Nichols, George B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark Arrester. (open access)

Spark Arrester.

Patent for a new and improved spark arrester. This design "consists in the construction and arrangement of devices by means of which the sparks are extinguished and the cinders distributed on the road-bed, while the fine dust is delivered into the ash-box" (lines 19-23).
Date: September 12, 1882
Creator: Nichols, George B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Split Switch (open access)

Split Switch

Patent for a split switch, with illustrations. The "invention relates to split switches; and the object of our invention is to provide a switch which will be normally in condition to prevent a train from running on the main track from the siding, and yet always keep the main track in condition for the rapid movement of trains, and at the same time allow the shunting of a train from the main track to the side track" (lines 16-24).
Date: May 15, 1883
Creator: Crowley, John Henry & Temple, Bernard Moore
System: The Portal to Texas History
Splicing Device. (open access)

Splicing Device.

Patent for a new and improved wire splicer. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the casing, of the wires entering the casing at the opposite sides of the respective ends and bent in opposite directions, so as to interlock within the casing, said casing being bent down . . . at each end" (lines 62-67).
Date: April 9, 1889
Creator: Basel, John Conrad
System: The Portal to Texas History
Push Bar for Locomotives (open access)

Push Bar for Locomotives

Patent for invention of new and useful improvements of Push-Bars for Locomotives for coupling to car
Date: April 2, 1889
Creator: Toohey, Matthew, D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Suspended Safe, &c. (open access)

Suspended Safe, &c.

Patent for a new and improved safe. This design "[has a] top projecting beyond its sides . . . in combination with the upright posts having liquid-cups, the rods, and sleeves for suspending the safe from contact with any object" (lines 79-83).
Date: March 21, 1882
Creator: Mason, Sanford
System: The Portal to Texas History
Washing-Fluid (open access)

Washing-Fluid

Patent for invention has relation to improved detergent and it consists in combining certain ingredients and the manner and proportions as will be here in after fully set forth, and particular pointed out in the claim appended.[10]
Date: March 8, 1887
Creator: Mnnick, Maggie, E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Time-Calculator. (open access)

Time-Calculator.

Patent for a machine that easily calculates the number of days within a given time span, up to one year, with illustrations.
Date: October 18, 1886
Creator: Wood, William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Music-Leaf Turner. (open access)

Music-Leaf Turner.

Patent for a device for "Turning Leaves of Sheet-Musics, Music-Books and, other Books" (lines 5-7), including instructions and illustrations.
Date: March 16, 1880
Creator: Becker, Francis L.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Telephone. (open access)

Telephone.

Patent for a new and improved telephone. This design "consists, first, in a set of U-shaped elastic magnets adapted to be supported by the head of the person sending and receiving messages, the end of said magnet or magnets connecting the receivers . . . second, in the peculiar construction and arrangement of the transmitter attached after the manner of a swinging bail to the receivers . . . third, providing supports for the telephone when not in use" (lines 32-43).
Date: August 24, 1880
Creator: McDermott, John P.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Snath Fastener. (open access)

Snath Fastener.

Patent for a new and improved snath fastener. This design "relates to devices for attaching scythes to their handles; and it consists in certain improvements in the construction of the same" (lines 17-20).
Date: April 11, 1882
Creator: Schultze, August
System: The Portal to Texas History
Swing. (open access)

Swing.

Patent for a new and improved swing. This design consists in "[t]he combination of a suitable support, a single hanger having its width increased at that point where the friction-roller of the operating-lever bears against it, with the operating-lever provided with a friction-roller to bear against the front edge of the hanger, a second roller, over which the cord passes, a friction-roller attached to the hanger, and an operating cord" (lines 18-26).
Date: June 16, 1885
Creator: Elliott, William W.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Swing. (open access)

Swing.

Patent for a new and improved swing. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the two folding frames, provided with jointed braces, of the horizontal cross-bars secured to said frames, the swinging arms pivoted to said bars and also to the car, cross-bars secured to these arms, [and] the curved levers" (lines 95-100). Said curved levers are hinged to "the cross-bars, [and] the crossed ropes or chains [are] connecting the short arms of said levers to the cross-bars, and the pull-cords [are] attached to the long arms of said levers and [are] extended to the seats of the said car" (lines 1-5).
Date: May 10, 1887
Creator: Rigby, James
System: The Portal to Texas History
Feeder for Power Printing-Presses (open access)

Feeder for Power Printing-Presses

Patent for improvements in the construction feeders for power printing presses.
Date: July 2, 1889
Creator: Orser, Levi
System: The Portal to Texas History
Fire-Kindler. (open access)

Fire-Kindler.

Patent for a composition of matter to be used for kindling fires. Ingredients, proportions of ingredients and mixing instructions are included. No illustration.
Date: December 20, 1881
Creator: Boyd, William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Railway Steam Car Brake (open access)

Railway Steam Car Brake

Patent for improvement in railway car brake by adding a steam actuating device attached to the locomotive.
Date: May 22, 1883
Creator: Walker, Fred B. & Lauder, James
System: The Portal to Texas History
Refrigerating Machine. (open access)

Refrigerating Machine.

Patent for improvement of refrigerating machines with detachable top and hinged sides with refrigerant pipes extending longitudinally. Accompanied by illustrations.
Date: February 5, 1884
Creator: Lee, Charles B.
System: The Portal to Texas History