Attachment for Plows. (open access)

Attachment for Plows.

Patent for a new and improved attachment for plows. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the rear of the land-side of a turning plow, of an attachment for dirting the plants, consisting of a shank having a rearwardly and upwardly extending blade diagonally attached thereto, having a sharp curved lower edge and a curved upper edge, said edges forming a point on the outer end of the blade, said blade having a concaved upper face" (lines 7-15).
Date: August 14, 1888
Creator: Tennison, James B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Method of Marking the Keys of Key-Boards for Musical Instruments (open access)

Method of Marking the Keys of Key-Boards for Musical Instruments

Patent for "a system of musical notation in which the several notes or note-symbols are shaped so as to approximate in appearance the shape of the letters from which they derive their appellations" (lines 37-41) especially in relation to piano-fortes, organs, and keyed instruments and in teaching music, including instructions and illustrations.
Date: June 29, 1880
Creator: Black, Jane B. D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark-Arrester. (open access)

Spark-Arrester.

Patent for Spark-Arrester. The author claims his invention catches sparks and throws them to the bottom of the chamber to the discharge pipe. Used in locomotive smoke stacks.
Date: October 12, 1880
Creator: Swan, Robert F.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Plow. (open access)

Plow.

Patent for a new and improved plow. This design consists, "with the beam and mold-board, of an attachment which is adapted to be secured to either side of the beam in the rear of the mold-board, consisting of a curved standard having its lower end bent up parallel with and part way its vertical length, forming a U-shaped foot, serrations on the rear edges of the foot, and registering perforations formed in the standard and upper end of the bent-up portion, an oblique brace secured between the parallel portions of the standard, having a series of perforations therein" (lines 12-24).
Date: November 5, 1889
Creator: Stone, Zebedee E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Device for Digging Wells or Post Holes. (open access)

Device for Digging Wells or Post Holes.

Patent for a new and improved post-hole digger. This design consists in "the combination, with an annular head carrying cutters, of the block or bar, the arms secured at their upper ends to the bar or block and at their opposite ends to the head, the cylinder, and the yielding arms secured at one end to said bar and their opposite ends adapted to engage the upper edge of the cylinder" (lines 34-41).
Date: November 12, 1889
Creator: Stephenson, Elam Grigory
System: The Portal to Texas History