IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO OPEN FIRE-PLACES
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George William Crawshaw, of Rochdale, in the
County of Lancaster, Merchant, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
APPLICABLE TO OPEN FIRE-PLACES."
Sealed the 30th September 1873, and dated the 3rd April 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George William
Crawshaw at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 3rd April 1873.
I, GEORGE WILLIAM CRAWSHAW, of Rochdale, in the County of Lan-
caster, Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS APPLICABLE TO OPEN FIRE-PLACES," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists in an adaptation to open fire-places, which are
not on the register principle, whereby a considerable portion of the heat
which now escapes by the chimney is arrested and radiated for useful.
purposes. To accomplish this I place a slab just above and behind the
fire resting upon any suitable supports, and inclined forward at an angle,
so that the upper end extends towards the front of the fire-place. At

page_text: the bottom of this slab is a space for the passage of smoke, which con-
sequently passes behind it. I propose to form the slab with corrugations
diagonal by preference, and to provide it with apertures extending
upward. Heat which would otherwise pass direct to the chimney is
thus absorbed to be gradually radiated into the apartment. I prefer to
form the said slab of earthenware, but it may be of other non-combustible
materials.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said George William Crawshaw in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 3rd October 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
WILLIAM CRAWSHAW, of Rochdale, in the County of Lancaster,
Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Third day of April, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said George William Crawshaw, Her special license
that I, the said George William Crawshaw, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said George William Crawshaw, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,
the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
APPLICABLE TO OPEN FIRE-PLACES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said George William Crawshaw, by an instrument in writing
under my hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Willlam Crawshaw, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement and accompanying Drawing, that is to
say:
My Invention consists in a certain appliance to be placed at the back
of ordinary fire-places, particularly kitchen ranges, whereby the heat is
radiated into the apartment, and the quantity thereof regulated so as to
economize the amount of fuel consumed.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 represents my improved fire-
back in front view; Fig. 2 is a vertical section thereof; Fig. 3, a
horizontal view; and Fig. 4, a horizontal section. In Fig. 5 the
improved back is shewn adapted to an ordinary fire-place, but I will in
the first place describe the construction of the apparatus referring to
the four first Figures above alluded to, and will subsequently shew its
operation.
The front of the apparatus is shewn at a constructed in a curved form,
but not necessarily so, and provided with corrugations 6 and a flange c
on either side. At d aro apertures formed through the part a leading
diagonally to a chamber e, which is continued through an opening f
formed in the part a, the back of such chamber being formed by the
part g, and the whole of the parts described I prefer to make in one
piece of fire-clay, but metal may be used if desired. In the front part a
and back part g are slots to which is adapted a damper h.
In Fig. 5 the apparatus is shewn adapted to a fire-place, the part g*
resting upon the projection i, which usually exists in fire-places; but
when it is not present any suitable support may be provided. The
front a leans forward at an angle, its upper end resting upon the wall k.
According to the position of the damper shewn in the Drawing the
products of combustion proceeding from the fire-place pass through
the opening f, and from thence through the chamber e to the chimney;
but in case of a down draught some smoke may go directly upward
along the face a, and pass through the perforations d. By these means
an amount of heat which would otherwise be wasted is deflected and
radiated into the apartment. The chamber e constituted by the back
part g is not absolutely necessary, but it affords facilities for adapting

page_text: the damper and regulating the draught. By drawing the damper h
forward the draught direct through the chamber e may be modified.
The apparatus above described is complete in itself, and may be made
in different sizes to suit the ordinary dimensions of fire-places, and a
slight reduction of width may be effected by chipping off portions of the 5
parts o.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I desire it to
be understood that I claim as secured to me under the above in part
recited Letters Patent, and for the purposes above set forth, the use of 1
the inclined radiating fire-back, constructed and adapted substantially as
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George William Crawshaw, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Second day of October, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy- 1
three.