Animal-Trap. (open access)

Animal-Trap.

Patent for a new and useful animal trap, including instructions and illustrations.
Date: November 14, 1899
Creator: Johnson, Joshua J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Ballast-Scraper. (open access)

Ballast-Scraper.

Patent for new and useful improvements in ballast scrapers, including instructions and illustrations.
Date: August 22, 1899
Creator: McElvaney, Charles T.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bank - Protecting Device. (open access)

Bank - Protecting Device.

Patent for a new and useful bank-protecting device.
Date: February 1, 1898
Creator: Hinkle, George J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Rake and Portable Baling-Press (open access)

Combined Rake and Portable Baling-Press

Patent for a "combined rake and portable baling-press, the objects in view being to provide a machine of the above class of comparatively cheap and simple construction and adapted to rake, elevate, deliver, pack, and bale hay and to apply the binding wires to the bales as formed in one continuous operation" (lines 8-15).
Date: September 7, 1892
Creator: Shero, Christopher C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bicycle Attachment. (open access)

Bicycle Attachment.

Patent for "a new and improved bicycle attachment arranged to serve as a foot-rest for the feet of the rider while coasting and adapted to be lowered to support the bicycle in a vertical position when not in use and to securely lock the wheel and support together to prevent the machine from being stolen" (lines 7-14), including illustrations.
Date: May 11, 1897
Creator: Zintgraff, August
System: The Portal to Texas History
Automatic Car-Switching System. (open access)

Automatic Car-Switching System.

Patent for "a system of switching where the cars of a train are pushed up an incline and placed successively on an elevated annular revolving platform, by which they are automatically distributed to their respective receiving-tracks" (lines 9-14).
Date: March 24, 1896
Creator: Lelardoux, Pierre
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Cotton Chopper and Cultivator. (open access)

Combined Cotton Chopper and Cultivator.

Patent for a combined cotton chopper and cultivator that "consists in providing the main axle with spur-wheels and with depending supports to which are attached the beams of the cultivator shovels and a cutting blade which extends in front of the machine and is adapted to be vibrated by the spur-wheels as the machine moves over the ground, thereby providing means for chopping cotton or other stalks" (lines 17-25).
Date: January 23, 1894
Creator: Bosley, Henry C. & Organ, Joseph H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Automatic Damper-Regulator. (open access)

Automatic Damper-Regulator.

Patent for an automatic steam damper-regulator that is simply constructed, and can quickly close and open its damper in the flue of the boiler or furnace.
Date: February 13, 1894
Creator: Gaston, Stephen M.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Cigar-Tip Cutter and Match-Safe. (open access)

Combined Cigar-Tip Cutter and Match-Safe.

Patent for a combined cigar tip cutter and match-safe that consists of a shaft, an operating lever, a match box under the lever, a link that attaches the match box to the lever, a coiled spring that is attached to the lever, a curved lever that is lined up to the other lever, a spring connecting the two levers, and a picker.
Date: April 4, 1893
Creator: Briggs, William J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Conduit Electric Railway. (open access)

Conduit Electric Railway.

Patent for a surface trolley for electric railways that operates "upon the surface of the pavement or ground between the tracks of the road, for connecting the car with the motor power, in place of the trolley and over head wires now suspended upon the unsightly poles in the center or at the sides of the street, which are found to be very objectionable on account of their obstructing the passageway in the streets and upon the side walks, and the wires preventing the free movement of fire companies in extending their ladders in gaining access to buildings, and also because of the great danger attending persons and animals moving about in the street, on account of the charged or live wires frequently being thrown down upon the ground, and coming in contact with and destroying the life of persons, and also on account of the frequent fatal accidents to persons having charge of the repair of the wires and other apparatus in connection with them, often coming in contact with live wires while elevated on the poles and engaged in repairing them" (lines 16-38).
Date: April 11, 1893
Creator: Voe, William R. de
System: The Portal to Texas History
Churn. (open access)

Churn.

Patent for a new and improved churn. This design consists in "[t]he combination of the standards, the longitudinal bars connecting the same, the driving-shaft journaled on the upper bars, the counter-shaft journaled on the lower bars and provided with a crank-disk at one end, gearing between the driving-shaft and the counter-shaft, the balance-wheel on the counter-shaft, the rock-shaft journaled on the upper bars and provided with the oppositely-extending crank-arms between the said bars, the crank arm depending from the end of the rock-shaft, [and] the pitman" (lines 88-99).
Date: April 29, 1890
Creator: Anderson, Henry C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Animal Trap. (open access)

Animal Trap.

Patent for a new and improved animal trap. This design consists in "the combination of the base-board having the opposite recesses and the transverse shaft, the yoke having the spring-coils mounted on the projecting ends of the shaft in said recesses, the standard having the holding-rod, the trigger, and the guards or prongs secured in the base-board" (lines 20-26).
Date: August 19, 1890
Creator: Anderson, Henry C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Apparatus for Washing and Draining Dishes. (open access)

Apparatus for Washing and Draining Dishes.

Patent for a new and improved dishwasher. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with a pan provided near its top on the inner side with rigidly-attached brackets, with a tray in the form of a pan whose side and bottom portions are perforated . . . the tray being of less diameter and height than the pan and provided on its outer side near the bottom with brackets and on its upper edge with handles" (lines 94-101).
Date: January 14, 1890
Creator: Caradine, Virginia C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Clasp (open access)

Clasp

Patent for a new and improved clasp. This design "compris[es] a base and a reversely bent or inclined retaining or clamping arm formed of a single continuous wire with an eye at one end thereof and a bend or enlargement at the other end thereof, the frame or base being substantially rectangular, and the upward bent arm extending through the eye at one end of the base and having the bend or enlargement at the other end arranged near or against the end bar at the opposite end of the frame" (lines 66-76).
Date: November 11, 1890
Creator: Anderson, Henry C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Apparatus for Raising and Lowering Wagon Bodies. (open access)

Apparatus for Raising and Lowering Wagon Bodies.

Patent for a new and improved wagon jack. This design consists "[i]n a wagon body raiser, the combination of vertical supports, a lever pivotally supported therefrom between its ends and having a roller in one end, a shaft adapted to be secured to one end of the body, a cord having one end connected with the same end of the body as the shaft and passing over the roller and its opposite end attached to the shaft, and a cord attached to the opposite end of the body and to the adjacent end of the lever" (lines 69-78).
Date: December 9, 1890
Creator: Scott, Eugene Edward
System: The Portal to Texas History
Conflagration Arrester. (open access)

Conflagration Arrester.

Patent for a new and improved conflagration arrester. This design "is to provide a device by which the sides of a building adjacent to other buildings on fire may be protected by a uniform continuous sheet of water covering the sides of such building" (lines 9-13). It consists in "the combination of a series of inclined arms provided with eyes at their outer ends and having hooks to engage the side of a building, a shelf or deflector, and a rod so connecting the latter pivotally with the eyes of the inclined arms that the upper part of said shelf shall overbalance the lower part, which shall . . . rest against the wall" (lines 89-97).
Date: January 20, 1891
Creator: Puckett, Florence N.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Animal-Trap. (open access)

Animal-Trap.

Patent for improvements in animal-traps that would be capable of catching two animals; to set the trap, bait is placed upon the hooked ends of the bait-hooks, the jaws are elevated and retained in a position by the link-catches, which have the lower hooked ends engaging the trigger, which has its free end engaging the eye at the inner end of the bait hooks, thus setting the trap, (lines 66-73) ready to catch animals. Illustration is included.
Date: May 5, 1891
Creator: Anderson, Henry Clay
System: The Portal to Texas History
Churn. (open access)

Churn.

Patent for improvements to churns, "and has special reference to what are known as 'vibrating-dasher' churns." (lines 11-12) Includes instructions and illustrations.
Date: February 3, 1891
Creator: Anderson, Henry C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Composition of Matter for Manufacturing Calcium Carbid. (open access)

Composition of Matter for Manufacturing Calcium Carbid.

Patent for a "new and useful Composition of Matter for Manufacturing Calcium Carbid" (lines 5-7) that will aid in the commercially successful production. Patent includes specifications for the composition of matter.
Date: September 7, 1897
Creator: Blum, Sylvain; Eldridge, Hillary; Clark, Daniel J. & Lazarus, Sam
System: The Portal to Texas History
Car-Coupling. (open access)

Car-Coupling.

Patent for a simple, practical, and reliable car-coupling with a side latch. It is "adapted for automatic connection in pairs, when two cars having the improvements are brought together on the same track, which will be capable of a ready release from the side of either coupled car, and also that will be adapted by its peculiar formation to receive support from one part of the improvements, when a coupled drawhead is partly detached from its connections to the car, and which if not so sustained might fall on the track, derail the car having the disabled coupling, and occasion the wreckage of said car and others of a train" (lines 14-27).
Date: January 15, 1895
Creator: Curry, Charles D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wire-Stretching and Staple-Pulling Device. (open access)

Wire-Stretching and Staple-Pulling Device.

Patent for a tool "which is adapted for stretching wire for fencing purposed and which may also be used for drawing the staples from the posts and splicing between posts when such action is necessary." (Lines 9-13) Includes instructions and illustrations.
Date: July 20, 1897
Creator: McElroy, Jesse Roberts
System: The Portal to Texas History
Washing-Machine (open access)

Washing-Machine

Patent for improvements to cylinder washing machines.
Date: April 29, 1890
Creator: Anderson, Henry C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Liniment (open access)

Liniment

Patent for "a medical compound or liniment for the alleviation and cure of wounds, especially those occasioned by barb-wire fences, burns, bruises, sprains, rheumatism, frost-bites, and hemorrhoids on man or beast" (lines 11-15).
Date: October 7, 1890
Creator: Doppelmayer, Mayer
System: The Portal to Texas History
Ironing Table. (open access)

Ironing Table.

Patent for a new and improved ironing board. This design consists, "with the supporting-frame and hinged board, of the inclined bar pivoted to the under side of said board, the lever hinged at one end to the lower end of the bar and fulcrumed . . . to the under side of the cross-bar, and the treadle hinged to one bottom rail and passing under the other" (lines 75-82).
Date: October 21, 1890
Creator: Wagnon, Andrew W.
System: The Portal to Texas History