Car Coupling. (open access)

Car Coupling.

Patent for a new and improved car-coupling. This design calls for two u-shaped metal pieces, one narrower than the other, each with eyes at their ends. A metal rod, which doubles as a handle, threads the eyes, connecting the pieces and allowing for the two loops to butterfly; one car can be bound to each of the loops with a metal pin.
Date: August 22, 1882
Creator: Stopple, John J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Improvement in Methods of Adjusting Signaling-Mirrors. (open access)

Improvement in Methods of Adjusting Signaling-Mirrors.

Patent for an improvement in the "method of throwing reflected light of a mirror with accuracy upon a distant object in flash-signaling" (lines 5-7), including illustrations.
Date: April 22, 1873
Creator: Kenney, Martin M.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Improvement in Insect-Destroying Compounds. (open access)

Improvement in Insect-Destroying Compounds.

Patent for an insecticide that kills ants via fumigation. Ingredients include sulfur, charcoal, potassium cyanide, arsenic, and coal tar.
Date: September 22, 1874
Creator: Tottenham, John William
System: The Portal to Texas History