Watch Maker's Pliers. (open access)

Watch Maker's Pliers.

Patent for new and improved watchmaker's pliers. This design "consists in a combination watch-hand tool or pliers to be used by watch-makers for removing the hands from a watch when it is to be repaired or new hands are required to be put on; also for holding new hands when they are to be filed and otherwise fitted to the watch; and the invention more especially consists in certain constructions of the jaw end portions of the pliers" (lines 8-16).
Date: May 12, 1885
Creator: Horton, Henry A. R.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Safety Valve Attachment for Lamps. (open access)

Safety Valve Attachment for Lamps.

Patent for a new and improved safety attachment for oil lamps. This design is "to permit of the escape of any gas which may be formed in the upper part of the oil-reservoir by the evaporation of its contents; and the object thereof is to provide a simple form of valve stamped from a single piece of sheet metal, with a shank adapted to be inserted through a slot in the lamp-collar and the valve afterward bent down over the valve-opening, thus presenting a valve that will be sensitive to the pressure of gas within the reservoir, and consequently insure its successful operation at all times" (lines 18-29).
Date: May 11, 1886
Creator: Ingle, Ezra William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Cotton Cultivator. (open access)

Cotton Cultivator.

Patent for a new and improved cultivator. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the base . . . of the slotted plate secured thereto, the strip on the rear side of the said plate, the blade having apertures and threaded bolts for adjusting the said blade" (lines 96-100). It further consists in "rear cutters or scrapers on the landside" (line 1).
Date: May 1, 1888
Creator: Irwin, William H. & Hairgrove, George W.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Baby Jumper. (open access)

Baby Jumper.

Patent for a new and improved baby jumper. This design consists in "the combination, with the vertically-resilient supporting-rod having a frame swiveled on its lower end, of the supporting garment adapted to be fastened around the infant and comprising the waist to be buttoned around the body, the pants depending from the waist and having the front flap and the side flaps adapted to be buttoned together in front of the infant, and the skirt attached to the waist at the top of the pants and hanging around the said pants, the upper edge of the waist being attached to the lower ends of [the] cords" (lines 1-13).
Date: May 15, 1888
Creator: Jones, Mary Perciller
System: The Portal to Texas History
Gag Runner. (open access)

Gag Runner.

Patent for a new and improved gag runner. This design "relates to a bearing device on a bridle for the reins; and it is [the design's] object to afford such a device, the construction of which shall permit its adjustment in position in the bridle without sewing it to the throat-latch" (lines 8-12).
Date: May 18, 1886
Creator: Kay, William V.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Harness Saddle. (open access)

Harness Saddle.

Patent for a new and improved harness-saddle. This design is "to provide a harness-pad and saddle-tree in which the pads or saddle shall be self-adjustable to the backs of the animals to which they are applied, and this without the employment of inner plates to enable the tree to be used for folded-leather, slip, or stuffed pads, as may be desired" (lines 9-15).
Date: May 18, 1886
Creator: Kay, William V.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Means for Propelling Railway Cars. (open access)

Means for Propelling Railway Cars.

Patent for a new and improved means for propelling railway cars. This design "relates to motive power for railway-cars, and the purpose thereof is to provide a simple combination of parts whereby each car may be impelled by a separate motor, the entire series throughout a line or train of cars being supplied with energy from a common source, whereby the full horse-power of a steam-boiler may be applied in a manner enabling it to be utilized to the greatest possible advantage and to the utmost extent" (lines 10-20).
Date: May 21, 1889
Creator: Keith, John M.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Bed Clothes Clamp. (open access)

Bed Clothes Clamp.

Patent for a new and improved clamp. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with a suitable clasp for holding the bed-clothes and its link, of the means for adjustably securing it to the bed-rail, consisting of a rod, having its lower end screw-threaded and provided with a nut and washer, and having on its upper end a hook-shaped projection that is adapted to pass over and around the upper edge of the bed-rail, and is provided with an eye . . . for connection with the clamp" (lines 65-74).
Date: May 26, 1885
Creator: Kiam, Benjamin
System: The Portal to Texas History
Cotton Sprinkler. (open access)

Cotton Sprinkler.

Patent for a new and improved sprinkler. This design consists in "[t]he combination of the L-shaped nozzle having the longer arm and the shorter arm, the spring-board secured to the side of the [shorter] arm and projecting over the end thereof, and provided with a boss on its upper side, the L-shaped bracket secured to the side of the [shorter] arm and having one end projecting over the spring-valve and provided with a screw-threaded opening, and the thumb-screw inserted through and playing in said opening and having its end swiveled in the boss of the spring-valve" (lines 84-95).
Date: May 14, 1889
Creator: Kister, William
System: The Portal to Texas History
Smoke Generator. (open access)

Smoke Generator.

Patent for a new and improved smoke machine. This design "relates to certain new and useful improvements in devices for containing fuel, so that the same can be burned slowly, so as to produce a large amount of smoke, the device being intended for the purpose of protecting orchards, vineyards, &c., from frost; and my invention consists in a perforated cylinder having a removable top and a bottom with an opening which is covered with a sliding door" (lines 15-24).
Date: May 4, 1886
Creator: Kizziar, James Williams
System: The Portal to Texas History
Cotton Sweep. (open access)

Cotton Sweep.

Patent for a new and improved cotton-sweep. This design consists in "[t]he combination, with the frame, having the longitudinal beams and with the detachable shanks of the blades or points each composed of the outer long arm and the inner short arm, making the front angle of about forty-five degrees with each other, and having their lower front edges sharpened" (lines 83-90).
Date: May 8, 1888
Creator: Knight, Thaddeus Warsaw
System: The Portal to Texas History
Ice Making and Blocking Machine. (open access)

Ice Making and Blocking Machine.

Patent for a new and improved ice machine. This design consists in "the combination of a non-conductive casing containing a freezing tank having water supply and discharge pipes, a water-tight diaphragm supported in said casing above the bottom of said tank having downwardly-tapered hollows in its upper surface and corresponding upwardly-tapered molds in its under surface, and a refrigerating medium contained within the said casing over said diaphragm and filling the hollows in the latter" (lines 82-91).
Date: May 17, 1887
Creator: Knox, George F.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wire Stretcher. (open access)

Wire Stretcher.

Patent for a new and improved wire stretcher. This design is "for stretching and repairing wire, the combination of a main bar having a longitudinal slot, and having an upwardly-facing shoulder provided with a groove, a guide-block in the lower end of the slot, a shaft journaled in the sides of the slot and having a pinion within the slot and a ratchet handle at its outer end for revolving it, a spring pawl engaging the pinion, a cam-lever pivoted upon the upper end of the main bar and engaging the grooved shoulder with its cam end, [and] a rack-bar sliding in the lower end of the slot upon the guide-block" (lines 43-55).
Date: May 4, 1886
Creator: La Bauve, Odelon Joseph
System: The Portal to Texas History
Apparatus for Hoisting Bales on Wagons. (open access)

Apparatus for Hoisting Bales on Wagons.

Patent for a new and improved bale hoister. This design "relates to apparatus for loading and unloading wagons, and it has for its object to provide an apparatus of this character which shall be cheap and simple in its construction, effective in its operation, strong and durable, an apparatus by the use of which a wagon may be quickly loaded and unloaded" (lines 9-15).
Date: May 12, 1885
Creator: Lamb, George Washington
System: The Portal to Texas History
Kitchen Cabinet. (open access)

Kitchen Cabinet.

Patent for a new and improved cabinet. This design "consist[s] of the body having a top . . . adapted to support a bread-board, the elevated casing provided with drawers, and an intermediate receptacle, the shelf thereof forming a recess . . . said recess adapted to receive the back edge of the bread-board . . . the hinged cover provided with a hinged shelf, the inclined abutments for said cover, and the cleat secured to one end of this cover at such an angle to the inclination of said abutments that when the cover bears against them the hinged shelf will be supported in a horizontal position by said cleat" (lines 22-37).
Date: May 3, 1887
Creator: Lane, Fernando G. & Acheson, Charles S.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Barrel Cover. (open access)

Barrel Cover.

Patent for a new and improved cover for barrels. This design calls for downward-extending flanges with wings along the perimeter of the cover. These flanges hold the cover in place over the barrel opening, but they also allow for the cover to rest at an angle on the upper rim of the barrel so that one has access to the contents of the barrel without the cover touching the ground.
Date: May 29, 1883
Creator: Lane, Fernando Gustavous
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wagon Brake. (open access)

Wagon Brake.

Patent for a new and improved wagon-brake. This goal of this design "is to provide an automatic brake for wagons and other wheeled vehicles running on dirt roads" (lines 11-13).
Date: May 23, 1882
Creator: Le Roy, Charles Jerome & Henson, John Wesley
System: The Portal to Texas History
Spark Arrester. (open access)

Spark Arrester.

Patent for a new and improved spark-arrester. This design consists in "[t]he combination of an inverted-U-shaped pipe joined to the smoke-stack of an engine, a suitable damper located at the junction, a water receptacle suspended from the free end of said pipe, and a water-pipe leading into said end from the boiler of the engine" (lines 85-90).
Date: May 4, 1886
Creator: Ledbetter, William Hughes
System: The Portal to Texas History
Composition For Roofing And Paving. (open access)

Composition For Roofing And Paving.

Patent for a process "to produce a compound which is strong, tenacious, and pliable, which will not be affected by climatic changes, and which will resist the corrosive action of acids and alkalies; and to this end my invention consists in a compound composed of asphaltum, pine-tar, and oxide of iron, as will more fully hereinafter appear.” (Lines 8-15) Includes instructions.
Date: May 9, 1882
Creator: Lee, Archibald K.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Design for a Shovel Cleaner or Knife. (open access)

Design for a Shovel Cleaner or Knife.

Design patent for a "shovel cleaner or knife" that has a particular configuration of a handle with a blade. The accompanying illustration is not included.
Date: May 3, 1887
Creator: Legler, Charles
System: The Portal to Texas History
Brace for Bedsteads, Gates, &c. (open access)

Brace for Bedsteads, Gates, &c.

Patent for a new and improved brace for bed frames. This design consists in "the posts having the hooks or eyes, the head-board, foot-board, and rails, also provided with hooks or eyes, the swivel, the wires, each having one end secured to one of the corner hooks or eyes, passed through the eye-bolt and screw-bolt, respectively" (lines 97-102). Said wires are further "given a half-turn on themselves, and their other ends secured to the opposite corner hooks, and the [other] wire having one end secured to one of the center hooks or eyes and woven in and out over the hooks or eyes" (lines 1-5).
Date: May 31, 1887
Creator: Lenix, John M. & Swann, George B.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Blind Slat Adjuster. (open access)

Blind Slat Adjuster.

Patent for a new and improved blind adjuster. This design consists in "[a] shutter-stop consisting of a slotted bar linked to the end of the slat-actuating rod of a shutter, in combination with a plate having a spur on one side and a screw-threaded stud on the other, a washer, and a thumb-nut" (lines 93-97).
Date: May 4, 1886
Creator: Lewis, Paulinus Aloysius
System: The Portal to Texas History
Cultivator. (open access)

Cultivator.

Patent for a new and improved cultivator. This design "is to provide a cultivator adapted to receive a plow for breaking new land, a hopper for seeding purposes, and a leveler for breaking lumps and evening the furrows, a further object being to provide a light, durable, and economical cultivator for general farm use" (lines 16-22).
Date: May 4, 1886
Creator: Lloyd, William D.
System: The Portal to Texas History
Stamp Canceler and Register. (open access)

Stamp Canceler and Register.

Patent for a new and improved stamp canceller. This design "consists in the combination, with an ordinary hand canceling device, of an indicator" (lines 22-24). This design utilizes a lever, and "[b]y properly adjusting [it], the device will indicate the cancellation of one-cent or three-cent stamps, and it is obvious that by making similar and proper provision for the adjustment of the throw of [the lever] the cancellation of stamps of any denomination may be indicated" (lines 83-89).
Date: May 3, 1881
Creator: Lupton, Lewis R.
System: The Portal to Texas History