Apparatus for Forcing Liquids from Barrels. (open access)

Apparatus for Forcing Liquids from Barrels.

Patent for a new and improved device for extracting liquids from sealed containers. This design utilizes a bellows apparatus, and "by simply compressing [it] air is forced into the space in the barrel or vessel above the liquid, when the pressure of this air will exhaust the liquid through the faucet at the bottom under pressure" (lines 65-70).
Date: October 16, 1883
Creator: Park, Hardy B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Boot Scraper. (open access)

Boot Scraper.

Patent for a new and improved boot scraper. This design "consists in the construction and novel arrangement of the inclined bow-shaped upper plate, having a transverse bar connecting the branches of the plate, the inner edges of which are inclined outward and upward from the upper edge of the transverse bar, and in providing, in connection with the bow-shaped plate, an under or subsidiary plate of forked form, having a rounded recess between the forks adapted to conform to the shape of the heel" (lines 18-30).
Date: October 23, 1883
Creator: Collins, Morris A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Chopper and Cultivator. (open access)

Combined Chopper and Cultivator.

Patent for a new and improved stalk cutter and cultivator. This design consists in "[t]he combination, in a chopper and cultivator, of the A-shaped frame carrying the plows, chopper, and the A-shaped truck-frame, said frame being mounted on the truck-frame by the cranks and provided with means for raising and lowering it" (lines 7-12).
Date: October 23, 1883
Creator: Daniel, Ellison Armistead
System: The Portal to Texas History
Veterinary Medicine (open access)

Veterinary Medicine

Patent for the invention of screw-worm liniment, provide a description of the ingredients within liniment. Compound relates to that class of reme-wounds cause by screw-worms and all kind of parasites in or on stock and poultry (10).
Date: October 30, 1883
Creator: Miller, Thomas, L.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wire Basket. (open access)

Wire Basket.

Patent for a new and improved wire basket. This design "consists in a certain combination, arrangement, and connection of a series of wires, whereby great strength is attained, the same including upper and lower hoop wires, upright or straight wires arranged to connect said hoops and wire frame bottom, and reversely-arranged diagonal wires or braces also connecting the top and bottom hoops, and twisted or wrapped around the upright wires intermediately of their length" (lines 13-22).
Date: October 16, 1883
Creator: Moore, William J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Lamp Chimney Cap. (open access)

Lamp Chimney Cap.

Patent for a new and improved cap for oil lamps. A lamp "equipped with [this] improvement may therefore be carried outdoors without danger of being put out or exploding on account of rain or wind. The protector, being made of metal, also serves by radiation to equalize the heat of the chimney and prevent it from cracking" (lines 48-54). Further, it is simpler and more durable than previous lamp-chimney caps.
Date: October 16, 1883
Creator: Wiesendanger, Emil Ulrich
System: The Portal to Texas History
Process of and Apparatus for Cleaning, Tinting, and Polishing Pecan and Other Nuts. (open access)

Process of and Apparatus for Cleaning, Tinting, and Polishing Pecan and Other Nuts.

Patent for a new and improved method and machine for cleaning, tinting, and polishing nuts. This design facilitates "[t]he process of cleaning and tinting pecan and other nuts, which consists in first subjecting them to the action of a lye, abrading substances, and water within a rotating close vessel, and subsequently to the action of a dyeing solution in a separate rotating close vessel" (lines 5-11).
Date: October 30, 1883
Creator: Koerber, Rudolph C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Sulky Plow. (open access)

Sulky Plow.

Patent for a new and improved sulky plow. This design "consists in a sulky-plow constructed with the sliding block carrying the adjustable wheel locked in place by a sliding spring-pressed bolt and withdrawn by means of an elbow-lever. The sliding wheel-carrying block is provided with rack-teeth engaging with the teeth of a double-gear wheel placed loosely upon the journal of the plow-crank, and connected with the plow-crank lever by a pawl, whereby the machine can be leveled and the plow adjusted by means of the same lever (lines 20-31).
Date: October 9, 1883
Creator: Henderson, William Chancy
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oil Can. (open access)

Oil Can.

Patent for a new and improved oil can. This design is of an oil-can "in which the nozzle remains closed, except when the bottom of the can is pressed, thereby preventing useless waste of oil. To prevent the oil-outlet from being stopped up; to enable the operator to see how much oil is given to each hole, and to facilitate the removal of dirt and grease from the oil-holes before oiling" (lines 8-15).
Date: October 23, 1883
Creator: Campbell, James A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Pan Cover. (open access)

Pan Cover.

Patent for a new and improved pan cover. This design's "lower section, being outwardly flaring, is capable of attachment to different size pans, and the bars serve to strengthen the cover and assist in supporting the upper pan, while the perforations admit a current of air through the cover, thus serving to keep the contents of the pan cool. The wire gauze . . . is designed to prevent flies, insects, &c., from getting into the pan, and to a great measure prevents dust from doing likewise, and they may be constructed any size desirable, and at the same time are durable and cheap to manufacture" (lines 42-54).
Date: October 30, 1883
Creator: Dowdell, Seleta C.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Telephone Time Signal-Repeating System. (open access)

Telephone Time Signal-Repeating System.

Patent for a system to automatically signal the current time over phone-lines.
Date: October 30, 1883
Creator: Oram, John M.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Hollow Auger. (open access)

Hollow Auger.

Patent for a new and improved hollow auger. This design "consists in an adjustable hollow auger and an adjustable fore-auger, which are combined together for use with an ordinary brace, and constructed in such a manner that when applied to use the end of the spoke or other article is first beveled by the fore-auger, and the tenon then formed by the hollow auger. The cutters of the fore-auger are formed upon pivoted arms, which are automatically released, and then thrown open by a spring when the spoke is pointed, in order to give opportunity for the hollow auger to act" (lines 16-28).
Date: October 16, 1883
Creator: Rodman, James A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Gin Saw. (open access)

Gin Saw.

Patent for a new and improved cotton-gin saw. This design's "object is to provide means for enabling the ready and convenient detachment of the teeth for substitution or other purposes, whereby superior advantages in point of simplicity, inexpensiveness, durability, and general efficiency are secured" (lines 10-15).
Date: October 30, 1883
Creator: Mann, Charles Wesley
System: The Portal to Texas History
Dry Ore-Concentrator (open access)

Dry Ore-Concentrator

Patent for improvements specifically for ore concentrators. Illustrations and instructions included.
Date: January 18, 1883
Creator: Vollmer, John George
System: The Portal to Texas History
Mosquito Bar Frame. (open access)

Mosquito Bar Frame.

Patent for a new and improved mosquito netting. This design "relates to mosquito-bar frames, and its object is to provide a device possessing superior advantages in point of simplicity, inexpensiveness, ease of adjustment, and general efficiency" (lines 9-13).
Date: October 16, 1883
Creator: Williams, Gilbert L.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Camel for Lightening Vessels. (open access)

Camel for Lightening Vessels.

Patent for a new and improved camel. This design "is to provide an apparatus that can be used for lifting or lightening deep-draft ships at sea or in roadsteads, for taking them over bars or through shallow water. To that end [the] invention consists in a floating apparatus or dock constructed so as to be sunk for receiving the vessel, and so as to be afterward raised for lifting and carrying the vessel" (lines 7-16).
Date: October 23, 1883
Creator: Peetz, John J.
System: The Portal to Texas History