IMPROVEMENTS IN CASES FOR HOLDING NEEDLES, PINS, AND OTHER ARTICLES
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Joseph Welch, of Redditch, in the County of
Worcester, Watchmaker, and Charles Laight, of Redditch, afore-
said, Needle Manufacturer, for the Invention of “ImproveMENTS IN
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Welch and
Charles Laight at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 12th May 1871.
We, JOSEPH WELCH, of Redditch, in the County of Worcester;
Watchmaker, and CHARLES LAIGHT, of Redditch aforesaid, Needle
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN CASES FOR HOLDING NEEDLES, PINS, AND OTHER ARTICLES,"
to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists in constructing and combining in the manner
herein-after described the parts of cases for holding needles, pins, and
other articles

page_text: In making a needle case according to one of the arrangements of
our Invention we form the body of the case of two rectangular metallic
plates or flaps jointed together at their inner longer edges by a hinge
joint, the said plates or flaps opening from and closing upon one another
after the manner of the cover of a book, the jointed plates or flaps
being held together when closed by a jointed or other catch. The
edges of the three unjointed sides of each metallic plate or flap are
serrated or made into teeth, the said teeth being situated in the same
plane as the said plates or flaps.
We place on the inside of the plates or flaps a piece or pieces of
leather or fabric, or other tissue, and by turning over the serrated edges
of the plates or flaps upon the edges of the piece or pieces of leather,
fabric, or tissue, we fix it or them to the inside of the case. The
metallic case is thus lined internally with leather, fabric, or other tissue.
In the said leather or fabric we make pockets to receive a series of
packets of needles, or we make incisions in the said leather or fabric
to receive a pair of scissors or crotchet needles or other articles; or the
leather or other lining of the case may serve to attach a hussif or flap
of soft fabric to, in which hussif or flap loose pins or needles may be
stuck.
==
Although we prefer to make the edges of the jointed plates or flaps
serrated, yet the edges of the plates to be turned upon the leather or
fabric may be plain instead of serrated.
According to another of our arrangements, in place of fixing inside
the jointed plates or flaps of the case leather or fabric in which the
needles are held, we combine with one or with each of the flaps or plates
a slide, within which slide the packets of needles are secured. The said
slide consists of a trough-shaped plate of metal, its edges working in the
turned down, serrated, or plain edges of the flap or plate of the case.
The upper part or top of the slide is jointed to the other part, so that
the said top part can be turned at right angles to the other part. At
the jointed top of the slide the heads and upper parts of the needles are
situated. When the slide is pushed into its flap or plate the jointed
top is prevented from being turned down by the edges of the said flap
or plate. When it is wished to gain access to the needles in the slide
the said slide is raised in its flap until its jointed top is clear of the
edges of the flap. The jointed top can now be turned down so as to
uncover the upper parts of the packets of needles held in the slide.

page_text: The jointed top may be used with flat needle cases of various kinds; or
cach jointed metallic flap may constitute a case, in which the packets of
needles are placed, the top of the cases being open to expose the upper
parts of the said packets. The open end of each case is covered and
uncovered by a jointed top piece. These top pieces when turned outwards
open the case, and when turned inwards embrace one another, and close
the case.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Joseph Welch and Charles Laight in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 7th November 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOSEPH
WELCH, of Redditch, in the County of Worcester, Watchmaker, and
CHARLES LAIGHT, of Redditch, aforesaid, Needle Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twelfth day of May, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto us, the said Joseph Welch and Charles Laight,
Her special licence that we, the said Joseph Welch and Charles
Laight, our executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
we, the said Joseph Welch and Charles Laight, our executors, admi-
nistrators, 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 IN CASES FOR
HOLDING NEEDLES, PINS, AND OTHER ARTICLES," upon the condition (amongst
others) that we, the said Joseph Welch and Charles Laight, our exe-
cutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our, or
their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us or
them, 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 we, the said Joseph Welch and Charles
Laight, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to
say:-
Our Invention consists in constructing and combining in the manner
herein-after described the parts of cases for holding needles, pins, and
other articles.
In making a needle case according to one of the arrangements of our
Invention, we form the body of the case of two rectangular metallic
plates or flaps jointed together at their inner longer edges by a hinge.
joint, the said plates or flaps opening from and closing upon one another
after the manner of the cover of a book, the jointed plates or flaps being
held together when closed by a jointed or other catch. The edges of
the three unjointed sides of each metallic plate or flap are serrated or
made into teeth, the said teeth being situated in the same plane as the
said plates or flaps. We place on the inside of the plates or flaps a
picce or pieces of leather or fabric or other tissue, and by turning over
the serrated edges of the plates or flaps upon the edges of the piece
or picces of leather fabric or tissue, we fix it or them to the inside
of the case; the metallic case is thus lined internally with leather,
fabric, or other tissue. In the said leather or fabric we make pockets
to receive a series of packets of needles, or we make incisions in the
said leather or fabric to receive a pair of scissors or crochet needles or
other articles; or the leather or other lining of the case may serve
to attach a hussif or flap of soft fabric to, in which bussif or flap loose
pins or needles may be stuck. The edges of the jointed plates or flaps
to be turned upon the leather or fabric may be plain instead of
serrated.
According to another of our arrangements, in place of fixing inside
the jointed plates or flaps of the case leather or fabric in which the
needles are held, we combine with one or with each of the flaps or plates
a slide, within which slide the packets of needles are secured. The
said slide consists of a trough-shaped plate of metal, its edges working
in the turned down, serrated, or plain edges of the flap or plate of the
case. The upper part or top of the slide is jointed to the other part,
so that the said top part can be turned down at right angles to the other
- part of the slide. At the jointed top of the slide the heads and upper

page_text: parts of the needles are situated. When the slide is pushed into its
flap or plate the jointed top is prevented from being turned down by the
edges of the said flap or plate. When it is wished to gain access to
the needles in the slide, the said slide is raised in its flap until its jointed
top is clear of the edges of the flap. The jointed top can now be turned
down so as to uncover the upper parts of the packets of needles held
in the slide. The jointed top may be used with flat needles cases of
various kinds.
Having explained the nature of our Invention, we will proceed to
describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawings, the manner
in which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in elevation and edge view an open needle case,
constructed according to our Invention; Figure 2 represents in cross
section; and Figure 3, in elevation and edge view, the said needle case
closed or folded up. The said needle case consists of two rectangular
metallic plates or flaps a, a, jointed together at their inner edges by
a hinge joint b, the said plates or flaps opening from and closing upon
one another after the manner of the cover of a book. When closed the
jointed plaps a, a, are held together by the jointed catch c. To the inner
side of each of the jointed flaps a, a, a lining d of leather or fabric or
thin sheet metal is fixed. In the said lining d pockets marked d², d²,
(see Figures 1 and 2) are made to receive packets of needles e, e; or
incisions or pockets may be made in the linings d, d, to receive a pair
of scissors or crochet needles or other small articles. By means of the
lining d a flap or hussif ƒ of soft material may be fixed to the case,
the said flap or hussif being pasted or otherwise secured to the lining d
before the latter is fixed to the metallic plate or flap of the case. The
linings d, d, in which the needle pockets are made are secured to the
metallic plates or flaps a, a, by means of the serrated edges a², a²,
of the said flaps or plates, the said serrated edges being turned over
the edges of the linings, as will be understood by an examination of the
Drawing.
Figure 4 represents in elevation and edge view an open needle case,
in which the turned-over edges a², a², by which the linings d, d, are fixed
to the inside of the metallic plates or flaps a, a, are plain instead of
serrated; and in addition to the pockets in the linings for receiving
packets of needles supplementary flaps or pockets g, g, for receiving
packets of needles are combined with the case, the inner edges of the

page_text: said flaps or pockets g, g, being secured to the inner side of the
linings d, d, before they are fixed to the jointed metallic plates a, a,
by the turning over of the edges a³, a³. The turned-over edges a², a², of
the case may have any desired ornamental shape.
Instead of using jointed flaps or plates of continuous metal, as
represented in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4, the central portions of the said.
plates may be pierced out so as to form frames, the flaps being completed
by the insertion in the frames of paper, gelatine, ornamented sheet
metal, or other substance which will give to the outside of the case an
ornamental appearance, the paper, gelatine, or sheet metal being held as
well as the inner lining between the two turned-over edges of the frame.
Figure 5 represents in elevation a folded needle case, the jointed flaps
of which are made as last described, the said case being provided with
the additional flaps 9, 9, shown in Figure 4.
Figure 6 represents a cross section of Figure 5. a, a, are the
turned-over edges of the metallic frame of the case; d, d, are the linings
inside the case in which the needle pockets are made; and h, h, are the
paper, gelatine, or metal panels forming the outer sides of the flaps
of the case. The manner in which the edges of the pannels h, h, and
linings d, d, are held between the two turned-over edges of each of the
metallic frames of the flaps will be readily understood by referring to
the section, Figure 6.
Figure 7 represents in front elevation and Figure 8 in cross section a
jointed metallic needle case, in which the covering flap is provided with
pockets for holding needles according to our Invention. i, i, is the
metallic case for holding the packets of needles k, the said case being
formed by the folding of the bottom of the case upon the body. The
jointed metallic flap or cover is provided with a lining m fixed thereto
by the turned-over edges or ears 12, 1, of the said flap or cover. In
the lining of the flap pockets m³, m², are made to receive a packet
of needles, and a large or a series of large needles or bodkins.
Figure 9 represents in elevation and Figure 10 in cross section
another needle case made of three jointed metallic plates or flaps n, o, p,
provided with linings q, r, 8, in which pockets are made for receiving
packets of needles and loose sewing machine or other large needles
or bodkins. The said linings are fixed to the inside of the metallic
flaps n, o, p, of the case by the turning of the edges or ears t, t, of the
case upon the said linings. The outer flaps q, 8, fold upon the middle

page_text: the case.
plate or flap r, and thereby cover the whole of the needles contained in
Our method of combining a lining for holding needles with
the flaps or sides of the metallic case may be applied to needle cases of
various kinds.
Figure 11 represents in front elevation and edge view an open needle
case in which one of the jointed plates or flaps is provided with a slide,
within which the packets of needles are placed; both flaps may, however,
be provided with slides of the kind represented.
1
Figure 12 is a side elevation of the needle case and Figure 13 is a
section of the same. a, a, are the jointed metallic flaps, and b is the
joint of the same. c is the slide consisting of a trough-shaped plate of
metal, its edges working in the turned-over edges a², a², of one of the
flaps a. To the upper end of the slide c a top part c² is jointed, the
said top part being capable of being turned down, and placed at right
angles to the slide. The heads and upper parts of the needles of the
packets d, d, are situated within the jointed top part c², and the bottoms
of the packets are supported on the bottom or ledge of the slide. When
the slide occupies the position represented in Figures 11 and 12 the
jointed top c² is prevented from being turned down by the edges a², a²,
of the flap or plate in which the edges of the jointed top c² work.
To gain access to the needles in the slide c the said slide is raised on
its flap until the edges of the jointed top c² are clear of the edges of the
said flap.
The jointed top c² can now be
turned down, as illustrated in
Figure 13, so as to uncover the upper parts of the packets of needles
held in the slide.
To close the slide and to permit of its motion into the flap a the
jointed top c is raised, so that its bottom edges are opposite the turned-
over edges of the flap, when the slide may be pushed home into its flap
and the slide closed.
Instead of combining the slide c, c², Figures 11, 12, and, 13, with a
jointed flap or plate, the said slide may be combined with an unjointed
plate, that is to say, the needle case may consist of a rectangular trough-
shaped body and a slide with a jointed top, the said slide working in
the turned over or trough edges of the body.
Figure 14 represents in side elevation, front and end elevation, and
section, a needle case of this kind fitted to hold a single packet of

page_text: .
needles, and Figure 15 represents the parts of which the case is made.
a is the trough-shaped body of the case, in the edges of which body
the edges of the trough-shaped slide c work. The slide c has a size and
shape proper to hold a single packet of needles; is the jointed top of
the slide, by the turning down of which, when the slide has been raised
in the body a, the heads and upper parts of the needles in the packet d
are exposed, as illustrated in the section of Figure 14. The rising
motion of the slide c, c², is limited by the stops e on either side, the
body a working in the cut-away parts f, f, in the edges of the said
slide.
The stop arrangement is best scen in the detached parts, Figure 15.
Figure 16 represents in front elevation a compound needle case of
the construction last described. The parts of this compound case are
marked with the same letters as corresponding parts in Figures 14
and 15.
Figure 17 represents a needle case of this kind fitted to hold sewing
machine needles, the slides c being provided with depressions or grooves
in which the shanks of the needles fit.
Figure 18 represents in front elevation and Figure 19 in vertical
section a needle case with a double-slide constructed according to our
Invention. In this case a rectangular trough frame a is used, on either
side of which a slide c with a jointed top c² works, the fixed plate or
division d separating the two slides. The jointed tops c², c², of the slides
open in opposite directions; a chain or handle may be connected to the
top of this case.
Figure 20 represents in front elevation and Figure 21 in side elevation
an open flat needle case provided with a modification of the jointed top
herein-before described.
case.
Figure 22 and Figure 23 represent the said case closed. a is the
flat metallic body of the case, having a series of semicircular openings
at top, at which openings the packets of needles are introduced into the
These openings are covered and uncovered by means of a plate c
jointed at to the back of the case, and by a flap d jointed to the top
edge of the said plate c. When the jointed plate c is raised parallel
with the back of the case it closes the semicircular openings at one side
of the case, and by then turning the jointed flap d over the top of the
case the semicircular openings at the other side of the case are also

page_text: closed, as illustrated in Figures 22 and 23. The flap d is fixed down
by a catch.
To gain access to the packets of needles in the case the flap d is first
raised and the jointed plate c turned back from the case, as illustrated
in Figures 20 and 21. The tops of the needles are thus exposed, and
can be removed from the case.
Although our improved cases with jointed tops are specially applicable
for holding needles, yet they may also be used for holding reserve black-
leads, and for holding other small articles.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood
that we do not limit ourselves to the precise details herein described
and illustrated, as the same may be varied without departing from the
nature of our Invention; but we claim as our Invention,-
Firstly. The improvements in cases for holding needles, pins, and
other small articles herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 1
to 10, both inclusive, of the accompanying Drawings, that is to say,
combining with the metallic flaps, or plates, or frames of the case
linings of leather, fabric, or other material, in which linings pockets are
made for receiving packets of needles and other small articles, the said
linings being fixed to the metallic flaps or frames, substantially as
described and illustrated. Also the method described with reference to
Figures 5 and 6 of forming the flaps of the case of panels inserted and
fixed in the metallic frame by the turned-over edges of the same.
Secondly. The improvements in cases for holding needles, pins, and
other small articles herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 11,
12, and 13 of the accompanying Drawings, that is to say, the com-
bination with one or with each of the jointed plates or flaps of the case
of a slide containing the packets of needles, the said slide being furnished
with a jointed top, and working in the turned-over edges of the flap or
plate, substantially as described and illustrated.
Thirdly. The improvements in cases for holding needles, pins, and
other small articles herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 14,
15, 16, 17, 18, and 19 of the accompanying Drawings, that is to say,
the combination with the body or plate of the case of a single or double
slide in which the packet or packets of needles are held, the said
slide being provided with a jointed top, substantially as described and
illustrated.

page_text: Lastly. The combination with flat metallic needles cases of a jointed
top, as herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 20, 21, 22,
and 23 of the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, we, the said Joseph Welch and Charles
Laight, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Third day
of November, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-one.
Witness,
JAMES ASTON,
Beoley Road,
Redditch.
(L.S.)
JOSEPH WELCH.
CHARLES LAIGHT. (L.S.)