Automatic Damper (open access)

Automatic Damper

Patent for "an attachment for stove-dampers whereby said dampers will be automatically moved, in order that the fire may be maintained at a predetermined heat" (lines 9-13).
Date: January 31, 1888
Creator: Beauchamp, William A. J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Automatic Fire Extinguisher. (open access)

Automatic Fire Extinguisher.

Patent for a new and improved fire extinguisher. This design is "to provide for automatically putting out a fire in any building in which [the] apparatus may be located, upon the temperature in said building or room reaching any predetermined degree. This result is accomplished by the action of an expansible fluid—such as mercury—in a contained vessel, which actuates certain . . . mechanism, causing the structure to be flooded with water or with a fire-extinguishing gas or fluid" (lines 22-32).
Date: December 30, 1890
Creator: Fuller, Wily Scott
System: The Portal to Texas History
Automatic Circuit Maker and Breaker (open access)

Automatic Circuit Maker and Breaker

Patent for an improved automatic circuit maker and breaker. This breaker specifically is meant to be used in conjunction with lighting systems.
Date: April 11, 1916
Creator: Mulford, Benjamin R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Blow-out Patch. (open access)

Blow-out Patch.

Patent, including illustrations, for tire or shoe blow-out patch that protects the inner tube of the tire and keeps the patch from sliding. Also notes the item can be constructed from "old fabrics from worn shoes or tires" to keep manufacturing and sales costs low (page 1, lines 30-31).
Date: March 16, 1920
Creator: Russell, Charles A., Jr.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bearing for Crank-Shafts. (open access)

Bearing for Crank-Shafts.

Patent for an improvement for Bearings for Cranks Shafts. This invention provides a means for "tightening the bushings of the bearings easily and quickly when necessary" (lines 9-13).
Date: October 22, 1918
Creator: Blumberg, Hamilton G.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Balanced Slide Valve. (open access)

Balanced Slide Valve.

Patent for a new and improved balanced slide-valve. This design consists in a "Steam-chest, a valve sliding therein, a chamber on top of the steam-chest, and a diaphragm in the top of the chamber and secured by a cap or plate, in combination with a frame having a packing-box and gland, an adjustable threaded stem or bolt passing through the frame, and the double-link connection between the said stem and valve" (lines 90-97).
Date: October 12, 1886
Creator: Bettis, William Irvin
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Comb, Brush, and Mirror. (open access)

Combined Comb, Brush, and Mirror.

Patent for a device which combines the features of a comb, a brush, and a mirror. Designed with removable components, any part of this device "can be used individually or ... can be separated for use in conjunction with each other" (lines 45-47). Illustrations included.
Date: March 16, 1920
Creator: Dunham, George H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bottle Stopper. (open access)

Bottle Stopper.

Patent for a bottle stopper made to be an alternative to cork plugs, including illustrations.
Date: May 7, 1919
Creator: Patronel, John.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Kiln. (open access)

Kiln.

Patent for improvements "to provide new and improved means for extinguishing accidental fires occurring within the kilns" (lines 8-10).
Date: January 14, 1890
Creator: Johnson, John H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Lubricant (open access)

Lubricant

Patent for "a new and useful composition of matter to be used for the prevention of heat caused from friction and attrition in the use and operation of all kinds of machinery, including railroad engines and cars, and all parts thereof" (lines 5-9).
Date: July 16, 1889
Creator: Corder, William J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Trap. (open access)

Trap.

Patent for a simple live trap suitable for use both on land and in water.
Date: February 10, 1920
Creator: Peavy, Josiah
System: The Portal to Texas History
Mucilage-Bottle. (open access)

Mucilage-Bottle.

Patent for a mucilage-bottle that has a brush which stays in the bottle, and is held in place with a cork. A spring is in the neck, and is compressed when the cork is inserted. This mucilage-bottle will not get clogged with dried mucilage.
Date: January 12, 1897
Creator: Taylor, George Watson
System: The Portal to Texas History
Steam-Boiler. (open access)

Steam-Boiler.

Patent for a steam-boiler that produces "a water-tube steam generator, which shall be simple in construction, easily repaired, interchangeable parts, and rapid and effective steaming qualities" (lines 16-19).
Date: August 7, 1894
Creator: Parker, Charles E.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Steam-Engine Valve. (open access)

Steam-Engine Valve.

Patent for a steam-engine valve that has an "improved rotary valve capable of feeding and exhausting one end of a steam-cylinder, and easily controlled and operated" (lines 18-20). This makes the engine easily controllable.
Date: September 17, 1895
Creator: Ford, Andrew H.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Process for Refining and Purifying Oils. (open access)

Process for Refining and Purifying Oils.

Patent for "processes for purifying oils, especially petroleum, and has for its object the removal of impurities and the neutralization of acids, and the reduction of the cost of refining oil by simplifying the process and reducing the length of time usually required for completing the purification" (lines 9-16).
Date: September 15, 1910
Creator: Lasher, David F.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Toothed Bar For Log Turners (open access)

Toothed Bar For Log Turners

Patent for toothed bar for log turners. Illustrations included.
Date: May 10, 1904
Creator: Edwards, Daniel R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Improvement in Combined Dish and Clothes Washer. (open access)

Improvement in Combined Dish and Clothes Washer.

Patent for a combined dish and clothes washer that has a tilting shelf for draining, attached to the sink for washing.
Date: August 15, 1876
Creator: Jackson, Ansberry Chapman
System: The Portal to Texas History
Track Cleaner (open access)

Track Cleaner

Patent for a device to clean tracks for sawmill carriages. Illustration included.
Date: May 21, 1907
Creator: Edwards, Daniel R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Projectile. (open access)

Projectile.

Patent for projectiles, more particularly to an explosive projectile. "One of the main objects of the invention is to provide a shell of the character stated which may be produced at relatively small cost..."
Date: June 24, 1919
Creator: Wilkins, Willie A.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Headlight Control (open access)

Headlight Control

Patent for Headlight Control
Date: September 12, 1916
Creator: Hartman, Reuben. E
System: The Portal to Texas History
Oil Can. (open access)

Oil Can.

Patent for a new and improved oil can. This design utilizes a handle with a hollow tube leading into the oil chamber, so when the removable cap is unscrewed from the handle, air flows into the chamber, which allows the oil to flow. This eliminates the need for a spring-bottom as with other oil cans, for the flow of oil can be stopped by sealing the tube.
Date: January 31, 1882
Creator: Wilson, Charles Bennett
System: The Portal to Texas History
Thermostatic Signal (open access)

Thermostatic Signal

Patent for Thermostatic Signal. "The object of my invention is to provide a device whereby an alarm will be automatically sounded when the temperature of the drier has reached too high a point." (lines 13-16). With Illustrations.
Date: September 18, 1888
Creator: Lutcher, Henry J.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Transmission-Gearing. (open access)

Transmission-Gearing.

Patent for an improved gear set adapted for transmitting power to the main driving wheels of farm tractors, the gear set embodying simple and efficient means of effecting a reversal of travel without any chance of gear stripping, as well as the whole transmission gearing encompassing less space.
Date: February 15, 1921
Creator: Blumberg, Hamilton G.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Hame-Fastener. (open access)

Hame-Fastener.

Patent for a new and useful improvement to an invention known as the hame fastener. Its purpose is to adjust and make a tight or loose connection between the hame and a desired object.
Date: November 2, 1920
Creator: Arnold, Thomas J.
System: The Portal to Texas History