Resource Type

Car-Coupling. (open access)

Car-Coupling.

Patent for "pin-and-link car-couplings to enable the same to couple automatically and to be readily uncoupled without going between cars, and to provide means for holding the link in substantially a horizontal position for guiding it into the mouth of a draw-head to avoid going between cars and guiding the link by hand." (Lines 12-19) Includes instructions and illustrations.
Date: April 13, 1897
Creator: Allen, George F.; Allen, Charles D. & Martin, Richard W.
System: The Portal to Texas History
System of Road Drainage. (open access)

System of Road Drainage.

Patent for a new and improved system of road drainage. This design is "especially . . . for use on dirt and other roads, and adapted to quickly dry the road after a heavy rainfall without disturbing the road-bed. The invention consists of a drain arranged longitudinally under the road-bed and provided with outlet-pipes placed suitable distances apart, and each adapted to be closed at its outer end, and branch air-pipes also extending from the said drain and adapted to be connected with an air-pump for pumping the air out of the drain" (lines 10-21).
Date: December 2, 1890
Creator: Mitchell, Alexander
System: The Portal to Texas History
Refrigerating Apparatus. (open access)

Refrigerating Apparatus.

Patent for a refrigerating apparatus that consists of a circular table that has a reservoir in its middle and jars mounted on fibrous mats and secured in a grid around the reservoir. Fibrous bags surround the jars and the excess material is gathered and goes into the reservoir.
Date: April 28, 1896
Creator: Dodge, Israel A.
System: The Portal to Texas History