An Improved Clothes-line Prop and Stretcher.
Year: 1890

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Clothes-line Prop and Stretcher.
I CHARLES CHASE MCLAUGHRY of Joliet, in the County of Will and State o
Illinois, United States of America do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:-
The object of my invention is to provide a prop for clothes lines by the aid of which
any degree of slackness in the line may be taken up and the line be retained in a
taut condition while in use.
The prop which is preferably made of wood of round section carries a bracket at
its upper end provided with two or more outwardly and downwardly projecting hooks
arranged one above the other, to the upper end of which bracket is loosely pivoted
an arm or stretcher provided near each end with an inwardly curved projecting
hook.
In applying the prop to take up any incidental slackness of the line, one of the
hooks on the fixed bracket is placed over the line and the prop is then inclined so
that the line may engage with one of the hooks on the pivoted stretcher, after
which the prop is inclined in the opposite direction so as to interlock the other hook
of the pivoted stretcher with the line. In this position a loop is formed in the line
the bight of which is around the lower hook on the fixed bracket and it is only
necessary now to bring the prop to an upright position to support the line and
remove all slackness due to the weight of the clothes upon it or the difficulty
incidental to stretching a line for a considerable distance between its points of
support.
Dated this 92nd da
1000
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Clothes-line Prop and Stretcher.
I, CHARLES CHASE MCCLAUGHRY of Joliet in the County of Will and State of
Illinois, United States of America, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement :-
The object of my invention is to provide a prop for clothes lines by the aid of
which any degree of slackness in the line may be taken up and the line be retained
in a taut condition while in use. To this end my invention consists in certain features
of construction and combination of parts, as is hereinafter described and indicated in
the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this
Specification, in which
Figure 1 is a perspective elevation of the upper portion of the clothes line prop
with a line in engagement and stretched.
Price 27
.:

page_text: •
Figure 2 is a plan view of the line-holding attachment in position on the prop-pole.
Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating the initial movement in the application of the
prop and line-stretcher to a slack line, and
Figure 4 represents the second stage of the operation, which, when completed by
placing the prop in a vertical position, secures the line and stretches it, taking up the
slack or looseness of the same.
Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.
The prop-pole A is preferably made of wood round in the body and having
sufficient length to serve the designated purpose. Upon the upper end of the pole A
is a bracket plate a secured by screws upon a flattened seat formed upon the side of
the pole near its upper end, as shewn. The bracket plate a is provided with two or
more outwardly and downwardly projecting stout hooks b which may be formed
integrally upon the plate or be inserted in holes formed therein and secured by
rivetting, screwing, or otherwise. Upon the upper end portion of the bracket plate a,
a stretcher c is imposed flatwise and loosely secured to said plate by a pivot cl
passed through a hole made in the stretcher, near its longitudinal and transverse
centre, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, whereby the stretcher is permitted to lie in a
horizontal plane or be vibrated therefrom. At points near each end of the stretcher c,
is an inwardly-curved hook d projecting outwardly on the same side of the stretcher
at an equal distance from its pivotal centre.
In placing the prop-pole so as to take up incidental slackness of the line B, one
of the hooks b is placed over the clothes line the pole A is then inclined so that
the line may be engaged by one of the hooks d on the pivoted stretcher c, as shewn
in Figure 3, the pole A is now inclined in an opposite direction and manipulated to
interlock the other hook d of the pivoted stretcher c with the clothes line B, it
being understood that the pole is inclined at a proper angle from the person of the
operator to readily effect the hooking connections mentioned. The pole A and
attached parts will now be engaged with the clothes line, as shewn in Figure 4, and,
as therein illustrated, it will be seen that a loop is formed the hight of which is
over the lower hook b. It is only necessary now to place the pole A in an upright
position, to support the line B and remove all slackness due to weight of clothes on
it or the difficulty incidental to stretching a line for a considerable distance between
its points of support.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is ;-
1. A clothes line prop and stretcher having a bracket plate and an oscillating
stretcher attached thereto, which together are adapted to engage a clothes line at
three points and take up slackness in the line, substantially as set forth.
2. A clothes line prop and stretcher comprised of a pole, a bracket plate fastened
on the upper portion of the pole having depending hooks projected from it, and an
oscillating stretcher pivoted near its centre above the hooks on the bracket plate and
furnished with hooks near its ends, substantially as set forth.
3. A clothes line prop and stretcher comprised of a pole, a bracket plate secured
thereon near its upper end and aligning with the body of the pole said bracket plate
having downwardly-projecting hooks on its lower end portion and an oscillating
stretcher which has an inwardly-curved hook on the same side near each end and is
pivoted on the upper end of the bracket plate at the longitudinal centre of said
stretcher, substantially as set forth.
D
371
1000
C. C. MCLAUGHRY.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Patent Agents.