Design for a Handkerchief, &c. (open access)

Design for a Handkerchief, &c.

Patent for "a new and original design for handkerchiefs, fans, napkins, cards, and similar articles" (lines 8-10).
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Bowen, George R.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Design for a Handkerchief, &c. (open access)

Design for a Handkerchief, &c.

Patent for a design for handkerchiefs, cards, napkins, etc., which features an Indian head,, a lion head, unicorns, scrolls, etc. Includes instructions and illustrations.
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Bowen, George R.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Pessary and Womb-Battery. (open access)

Combined Pessary and Womb-Battery.

Patent for a combined pessary and womb-battery. It is inserted into a woman's vagina and is used to deliver medication "and to stimulate the genitals to a healthy and normal action both mechanically and electrically" (lines 11-13). The device is worn without discomfort and can be worn while pregnant.
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Keller, Martha Ellen
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Cotton-Cleaning and Bat-Forming Apparatus. (open access)

Cotton-Cleaning and Bat-Forming Apparatus.

Patent for a cotton-cleaning and bat-forming apparatus that prepares cotton for compression into bales. The apparatus is meant to increase the value of the cotton it processes, and do so in an efficient and inexpensive manner. The amount of compression doubles the number of pounds of cotton one can fit into a bale. The chute does not let air out of the apparatus while cotton is being cleaned, and the air-pressure in the cleaner-condenser does not restrict the cotton's movement into the cleaner.
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Patterson, Warren A.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Halter and Weaning-Muzzle. (open access)

Combined Halter and Weaning-Muzzle.

Patent for a combined halter and weaning muzzle, "the halter being adapted for use independently of the muzzle and the latter being detachably connected to the halter" (lines 17-19). The halter is "the combination of a chin-strap and nose-band made in one piece and a weaning nose-band" (lines 18-20).
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Schow, Ottinus E.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combination-Plow. (open access)

Combination-Plow.

Patent for a combination-plow that "may be combined with facility to form a variety of plows designed for work of different kinds, the present invention being an improvement upon that shown and described in Patent No. 492,462, granted to [the inventor] February 28, 1893" (lines 10-15).
Date: July 14, 1896
Creator: Dean, John Rowe
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Combined Inkstand and Pen-Rack. (open access)

Combined Inkstand and Pen-Rack.

Patent for a inkstand with a magnetized pen-rack. If the pen or pencil isn't metal, a metal sleeve is provided to put around the utensil so it can sit on the rack. There is a space for ink-wells, pen-boxes, and a space for advertisements. It is meant for customers to use in lobbies.
Date: July 14, 1896
Creator: Moyer, Herman
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Button. (open access)

Button.

Patent for a button that can fit in any buttonhole. It is "a bar having a button or know affixed thereto and having key-hole-slots, of a button attached to an arm having a tongue and a contracted offset portion adjacent thereto and between the same and the button carried thereby, the said tongue being of a thickness substantially the same as the width of the slot" (lines 55-62).
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Burroughs, John J.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Construction of Doors or Window-Sashes. (open access)

Construction of Doors or Window-Sashes.

Patent for "improvements in the construction of doors and window-sashes, the object being to provide a door or window-sash which shall be constructed of two pieces of timber united by means of a key to prevent warping or twisting" (lines 8-13). The panel of the door or the pane of glass can also be united by the key. This design lightens and cheapens doors and window-sashes.
Date: July 28, 1896
Creator: Cordray, Henry A.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Car-Shading Adjuster. (open access)

Car-Shading Adjuster.

Patent for a car-shade adjuster in passenger-coaches of street-cars that allows shades to "be raised or lowered at will and held firmly in any desired position" (lines 18-19). It is set in tracks in the window frame, held in place by springs, and bearings to keep friction between the shade-roller and track.
Date: July 28, 1896
Creator: Smith, Earl W.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Genera and Subgenera of Voles and Lemmings (open access)

Genera and Subgenera of Voles and Lemmings

Revision of the genera and subgenera of voles and lemmings with comparison between North American and European.
Date: July 23, 1896
Creator: Miller, Gerrit S. (Gerrit Smith), 1869-1956
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Machine for Sharpening and Gumming Saws. (open access)

Machine for Sharpening and Gumming Saws.

Patent for a machine that sharpens and gums saws for cotton-gins. It does so quickly and does not fatigue the operator. It automatically feeds "the saws so as to bring the teeth successively into position to be operated upon, and which will cut the teeth uniformly, thereby preserving the circular outline of the saws and preserving the teeth of a uniform length and appearance" (lines 15-20).
Date: July 14, 1896
Creator: Hulme, William A. & Hulme, Thomas B.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Knee-Pad. (open access)

Knee-Pad.

Patent for a knee-pad that is meant to protect cotton-pickers as they crawl in uncomfortable areas. The knee-pads are made up of a concave oval made from leather, metal, or another strong material, with cloth attached to the base and edges of the oval. Straps go around the cloth and around the leg to hold it in place.
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Fergusson, William P.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Locking Joints for Railway-Rail Joints. (open access)

Locking Joints for Railway-Rail Joints.

Patent for a locking device for railway-rail joints. It improves how the meeting rail ends are fastened, and prevents accidental disconnection. It is "a locking fish-plate having keyhole bolt-slots, the narrow portion of the slots having inclined sides, the inclination diminishing gradually toward the end, and double-headed bolts, one of the heads being tapered, whereby the bolt is subjected to a double wedging action" (lines 56-61). A face-plate is perforated and receives the tapered heads and securing-rivets.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Anderson, Lee
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Wire-Stretcher. (open access)

Wire-Stretcher.

Patent for a device that efficiently stretches wires for fence-strands.
Date: July 14, 1896
Creator: Folk, David H.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Process of Tanning Hides. (open access)

Process of Tanning Hides.

Patent for "an improved process of tanning hides in an expeditious and economical manner, and to produce a fine quality of leather" (lines 8-11). The limed and haired hides are baited thrice, afterwards the hides are packed into "tanning-vats with bark and covering them with a solution of alum and water" (lines 80-82). The hides are then leached in salt water and scoured and dried.
Date: July 14, 1896
Creator: Rogers, John Charsley
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Speed-Indicator. (open access)

Speed-Indicator.

Patent for a speed-indicator to be used on trolly-cars and other vehicles that informs anyone looking behind the trolly-car if that car is speeding or not. An alarm goes off when the car goes above a predetermined speed, which is activated by a governor that is controlled from the wheels. A device keeps the signal normal.
Date: July 7, 1896
Creator: Bateman, Talbot Owens
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Portable Furnace. (open access)

Portable Furnace.

Patent for a furnace adapted for camping and general outdoor use. Includes instructions and illustrations.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Underwood, William T. & Underwood, Leroy C.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Horse-Check. (open access)

Horse-Check.

Patent for an automatic that prevents horses from starting off when left unattended. It detects when the vehicle begins moving and pulls back on the reins.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Lee, Charles
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
General Index and Alphabetical Record. (open access)

General Index and Alphabetical Record.

Patent for a general index and alphabetical record that organizes records in an index instead of a book.It is a chest of shallow drawers, each having a letter of the alphabet printed on its front. Attached to each drawer is a blank book.
Date: July 28, 1896
Creator: Ward, George C.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Gate. (open access)

Gate.

Patent for a rotary gate that has latch-posts and spring-latches at its ends. The spring-latches are designed to employ the latches. "Levers fulcrumed on the top of the gate and connected with each other, connecting-rods connecting said levers with the spring-latches, and vibratory braces rising from the sides of the gate and secured to said levers" (lines 33-37).
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Holder, Elisha G.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Saw Attachment. (open access)

Saw Attachment.

Patent for a handsaw attachment that gauges the depth to which one wishes to cut. It is a bar with an extended foot and clamping devices for attaching the device to the top and handle of the saw.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Gowdan, Richard H.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Rocking-Chair Fan. (open access)

Rocking-Chair Fan.

Patent for a rocking chair fan that spins when the operator begins rocking in the chair. It easily adjusts to any model of rocking chair and is noiseless.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Martyr, Leonard W. & Martyr, Ernest E.
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History
Fence-Stay. (open access)

Fence-Stay.

Patent for a simple and inexpensive fence-stay that "may be readily applied in a secure manner to horizontal fence-wires" (lines 12-13). The posts are sheets of metal, and metal T-shaped tongues hold the wires in place.
Date: July 21, 1896
Creator: Munger, Ennis
Object Type: Patent
System: The Portal to Texas History