IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORT- ABLE HOUSES, AND IN MACHINERY FOR RAISING, MOVING, AND LOWERING THE SAME
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Thorold, of Norwich, Civil Engineer,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORT-
ABLE HOUSES, AND IN MACHINERY FOR RAISING, MOVING, AND LOWERING
THE SAME.
Sealed the 28th November 1853, and dated the 2nd June 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Thorold
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 2nd June 1853.
I, WILLIAM THOROLD, of Norwich, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUC-
TION OF PORTABLE HOUSES, AND IN MACHINERY POR RAISING, MOVING, AND
LOWERING THE SAME," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of making portable houses so that they may
be lifted from the ground, and carried to and deposited in the position
desired, by machinery combined for that purpose. This Invention is
peculiarly applicable to cattle and other farm buildings. The buildings,
according to this Invention, may be constructed of wood or other

page_text: materials of the form desired; and the peculiarity or improvement in
the construction of the buildings is in introducing suspension rods,
which being fixed to the sills or lower parts of the building admit of
the buildings being slung up without injury thereto. And the machi-
nery for lifting and moving such houses consists of two or more
carriages, cach, by preference, on three wheels, and cach carriage has
uprights, which are made to rise or fall by screws, and the uprights are
connected together by means of one or more beams, to which the sus-
pending rods of the buildings are connected by chains or otherwise; by
which combined system a farm or other like portable building may be
lifted off the ground and kept suspended, and be moved to another place
and deposited there. The carriages and buildings being either moved
by horses or by capstans, or otherwise.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Thorold in the Great Seal Patent Office,
on the 2nd December 1853.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
WILLIAM THOROLD, of Norwich, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Second day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the sixteenth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said William Thorold, Her special licence that
I, the said William Thorold, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said William Thorold, my executors, adminis-
trators, 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 THE CON-
STRUCTION OF PORTABLE HOUSES, AND IN MACHINERY FOR RAISING, MOVING,
AND LOWERING THE SAME," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said William Thorold, by an instrument in writing under my

page_text: hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature
of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Thorold, 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):
This Invention consists of making portable houses so that they may
be lifted from the ground, and carried to and deposited in the position
desired, by machinery combined for that purpose. This Invention is
peculiarly applicable to cattle and other farm buildings. The buildings,
according to this Invention, may be constructed of wood or other mate-
rials of the forms desired; and the peculiarity or improvement in the
construction of the buildings is in introducing suspension rods, which
being fixed to the sills or lower parts of the building admit of the
buildings being slung up without injury thereto. And the machinery
for lifting and moving such houses consists of two or more carriages,
each, by preference, on three wheels, and each carriage has uprights,
which are made to rise or fall by screws, and the uprights are con-
nected together by means of one or more beams, to which the suspend-
ing rods of the buildings are connected by chains or otherwise. By
which combined system a firm or other like portable building may be
lifted off the ground and kept suspended, and be moved to another
place and deposited there. The carriage and building being either
moved by horses or by capstans, or otherwise.
Having thus stated the nature of the Invention, I will proceed to
describe the manner of performing the same.
Figure 1, is intended to illustrate a portable cattle house, and a
nachine for carrying, raising, or lowering the same. A, is a side view
or elevation of the house suspended in a longitudinal position by the
yes of the suspension rods a, a, for the purpose of conveying the build-
ng from place to place; B, shews an end view of the house; C, is a
ird's eye view of the same; D, shews the same house suspended in a

page_text: 1
position transverse to the former position by the eyes of the suspension
rods b, b, and capable of being moved to the position E, shewn by the
dotted lines c, d; and in like manner any distance can be passed over
by first fixing the machine perfectly level over the house, and suspend-
ing the building, and raising it high enough to clear any inequalities of
the ground, then slide the house as far as the machine will permit, then
lower the house and repeat the operation as may be required.
Referring again to D, the house is blocked up by planks e, e; it is
then applicable to the system of box feeding, well known in agriculture;
and it will further be necessary to bank up the space between the
blockings e, e, by the earth shown by ff ff. F, shows a longitudinal
view of D, raised as blockings; G, represents the machine for raising
and lowering houses by a side view; H, an end view of the same; I, is a
bird's eye view;
K, is also a side view, with the carriages set in a trans-
verse position to those of G, and elevated by the screws 1, 1. L, is an
end view of the same.
This machine consists of fore and aft carriages, each having three
wheels and a pair of common shafts; upon these carriages an iron ring
i, i, i, i, i, is fixed, upon which castors or rollers revolve, carrying the
axes k, k, turning upon a centre bolt, and upon these axes the screws
1, 1, are stepped with a clip or jointed step; each screw is fitted with a
nut or female screw, with cross tailed handles m, m, these screws
penetrate, and raise or fall by the action of the nut, the legs n, n, n, 'n,
these legs support the beam o, o, and upon the beam a rail of iron is
fixed, which carries the rollers p, p, from which hang chains with hooks
to connect the eyes of the suspension rods before described. M, refers
to an internal section of the house, shewing the mode of fixing the
suspension rods q, q, so as not to interfere in any way with the general
convenience of the house. N, is a bird's eye view of the same; r, r, r, r,
being the suspension rods. e, f, g, h, shows a mode of preventing cattle
feeding from soiling their food, the shield f, being suspended before the
manger.
Figure 2, represents a machine adapted to move houses both length-
ways and crossways with the same fixing. A, being an elevation;
B, a bird's eye view. a, b, c, are carriages, each having three wheels

page_text: or rollers; all these carriages have capstans d, d, d, fixed to them for
propelling the machine by manual labor; in the centre of these carriages
a step pot is found to receive the step of the screws f, f, f, and admit of
their working at an angle; the nuts or female screws are fixed at the
bottom of the legs h, h, h, and the screws are turned by the cross
handles g, g,g. The legs h, h, h, are attached to and support the
triangular frame k', k', and k, k', k', and braced so as to form one mass;
to this frame is bolted a cantilever r, attached to it, which is a radius
bar s, turning upon a pin at the extreme end of the cantilever ; the
other end of the radius bar is attached by a pin to the traversing frame
1, 1, 1, 1, upon which the frame m, m, travels in the manner well known
in travelling cranes.
The joints of suspension are capable of being shifted, those for the
lengthways movement being at x, y, z, and those for the crossways
movement being at 1, 2, y; and when it is required to move a house
crossways, the traversing frame must be turned upon the triangular
frame one fourth of a revolution, the radius bar describing the arc
t, u, v, the position of the traversing frame being shown by the dotted
lines w, w, w, w; n, n, n, n, 0, 0, 0, 0, and p, p, p, p, shows by dotted lines
the relative position of any house in a state of transit. 3, 3, exhibits a
tripod, the apex of which is designed to carry the apex of a tent, and
also a plumb bob to assist the eye when in levelling the machine.
4, 4, 4, is a circular curb attached to the triangular frame k', k, k¹, for
the purpose of supporting the caves of a tent.
Figure 3, represents another mode of constructing a machine for
raising, lowering, and moving houses, the peculiarity consists in attach-
ing the bearing wheels by forked arms immediately to the screws used
for raising and lowering the legs of the machine. A, is a side view,
shewing also a front view of a cottage suspended. B, is an end view of
the same. C, is a bird's eye view. D, is another side view, with the
bearing wheels at right angles to the position in which they are used for
travelling.
The principle of attaching the machine to the house to be moved
differs also from the machine before described. a, a, shows two sup-
porting beams, each having a length iron railway, upon which the

page_text: traversing carriage b, b, b, runs, and from the axles of this carriage are
three suspending chains c, c, c, two of them being attached to the axle
d, d, on B, the other hanging from the centre of the front axle at e;
and when it is desired to suspend a house, as shown at D, three rods
are inserted at f,f,f, and by having only three points of suspension
the house suspended preserves a parallel position to the beams a, a,
which in this machine also forms one mass with the legs, by being
braced by the wrought iron knees g. 9,9,9; and it is evident by turning
the nuts or female screws of the stern end of the machine the beams
can be brought to a perfect level transversely, and by turning the nut
of the front screw they can be levelled longitudinally, and the house
can be moved into the position shewn by the dotted lines, as before
described.
E, represents a front end view of the same machine, although it is
obviously loaded with another kind of house to be hereafter described;
but the house already referred to is shown by dotted lines h, h, h, h.
The house now suspended is shown to illustrate the principle of con-
.structing some kinds of houses with roofs affording more shelter than
a fixed roof, and yet capable of being passed through common gateways,
by turning them upon a pivot, as shown at i, i, so that they do not pro-
trude beyond the dotted lines h, h, h, h; and the property of covering
a wider space when in its original position is shewn at F, with its caves
k, k', projecting beyond the dotted lines 1, 1, 1, 1, shewing the end of the
first kind of house; these turning roofs are peculiarly adapted to sheep
houses, shewn in section at m, m, and as a bird's eye view n, n, n, n;
and when used for this purpose the mode of suspension is entirely
different from any before described.
For this purpose the three armed sling 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, F, and G, the
points of suspension being 2, P, P, P. P; from the points chains are
attached to the cross head q, q, which turns upon the centre arm of the
sling 0, 0, 0, and to the forked arms of the sling, and at their lower ends
they are hooked to the cross bearing bars s, s, shown on F, which com-
pletes the mode of suspension, and leaves the circular roof in freedom
to be turned in any direction of elevation or depression that may be
desired, and the circular roof is retained in its place by the chains t, t,

page_text: on H.
The house being thus suspended is now capable of being
turned round horizontally upon the centre pin w, at F, and will then
describe the arcs w, w; it can also be moved upon the railway, as before
described.
It is intended in this sheep house it is proposed to fix a grated
flooring and receptacles to retain exuvia of the sheep, and by the appli-
cation of peat charcoal or other media to produce a kind of guano,
which is to be withdrawn from the receptacles and not deposited upon
the land on which the sheep are then fed, but applied on other lands,
as may be desired.
Figure 4, A, is another mode of constructing a machine, whose
peculiarity consists in having the screws and forked arms to carry the
wheels constructed of cast iron; and the nuts or female screws are made
with wrought iron worms by bending a bar of about one inch in width
and of the proper thickness to slide freely in the sinking of the screw
round the screw four turns or threads, after which a metal shell is to
be cast around the worm to form a complete nut or female screw;
between the top of this nut b, b, and the bottom of the bracket columns
or legs c, c, friction rolls are to be inserted, as at a. The house sus-
pended by this machine is of the same capacity as the last, but differs
in the construction of the roof e, e, with hanging drip boards f, ff,ƒ›
hinged at f', f, as seen at B, which is a section of A, through the
dotted line g, h, and shews a complete end view of the same; this also
shews the mode of suspension by a three armed sling i, h, and i, i,
turning upon a centre bolt. The front arm of this sling carries a double
grooved pulley K, upon which two short chains are fixed, the outer
ends of these chains being attached to the roof at ¹. The forked
arms of the sling have each a pulley at i, i, which carry chains attached
to the drip boards at f, f, and the other ends of these chains are fixed
to the horizontal pullies at 7,1, turning on the centre bolt, which pulley is
either fixed or moveable by the shifting of the pin ; whenever this pin
fixes the pulleys 1, 1, the roof turns upon its centre coincidently with the
house, being turned horizontally so far as half a revolution; and when
the pin 7, is withdrawn from the pullies 1, 1, the roof remains relatively
in statu quo: another chain is fixed inside the roof at f, f, and passes

page_text: over the pullies 7, 1b, under the house, completes the circuit of connection,
and admits of the roof being always effective against the weather when
the house is turned to relieve the animals, who might otherwise be
cramped. C, and D, represent sectional views of a smaller kind of
sheep house, the screws of which are cast as before, and the nuts are
separated from the bracket legs by wrought iron washers m, m. The
house suspended by this machine has a semicircular roof turning upon
its centre, and below the chord line are drip valents o, o, and obviously
require no further description. E, is a side view of a machine with
timber legs, and is calculated to raise or lower houses only in a longi-
tudinal position, but notwithstanding is capable of carrying the roof
p, n, and of being adapted to suspend a floor q, q, which forms an
excellent straw house; s, s, &, s, forming ends to the same, and the roll
is for the purpose of levelling the straw by a vibrating motion from
external power.
F, is an end view of the same machine in use for
raising the continuous row of cattle houses r,,,; the dotted lines
8, 8, 8, s, being merely to show the ends of the straw house, which, as
they are not in the way of raising or lowering, are suffered to remain.
The dotted lines w, w, w, denote the lines of the suspension chains
attached to the house in the progress of being raised; t, t, t, shews the
eyes of the rods by which these continuous houses are suspended;
w, w, w, are inverted gutters to render the roof of such continuous
houses waterproof. G, shews another mode of constructing a straw
house independent of the machine, the roof x, a, being raised and
turned out of the way during the time the straw is being packed in the
framed house y, y; after which the roof is placed in its proper position,
and the machine H, and K', (which has already been described) is
driven over the straw house, and the chains z, z, are then attached to the
bottom y, y, and the screws of the machine are worked as for lowering
a house, but in reality for the purpose of compressing the straw by the
power of the screws; and the screws for this purpose are retained by
collars to enable them to act in an inverted position. L, represents a
side view of a windlass for moving the machine from place to place by
manual power. M, is a bird's eye view of the same. This windlass is
mounted upon wheels, and has shafts for the purpose of being dragged

page_text: by horses when required. The windlass has two rollers 1, and 2, of
differential proportions, and the machine to be moved is attached to
the pulley 3. The windless is anchored to the ground by the chains 4,
and 5, which is also applicable to shifting the windlass by manual
power. N, is a side view of a simpler windlass, and O, a bird's eye
view. This windlass is simply a roll between two cast wheels, and the
roll is actuated by a forked wheel ', with eight arms, as seen at 7.
The chain for which is also anchored at one end, while manual power is
applied to the other end. 8, is the point of attachment to the machine
to be removed.
In witness, I, the said William Thorold, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of November, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three.
5 Witness,
FRED HARRIS.
WILLIAM THOROLD. (L.B.)