Invention of METALLIC BEDSTEADS, ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE FRAMEWORK OF SPRING MATTRESSES
Year: 1873

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Welch, of Salford, in the County of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
Lancaster, Mechanic, for the Invention of
METALLIC BEDSTEADS, ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE FRAMEWORK OF SPRING
MATTRESSES."
Sealed the 16th June 1874, and dated the 19th December 1873.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Welch at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th December 1873.
•
I, WILLIAM WELCH, of Salford, in the County of Lancaster,
Mechanic, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN METALLIC BEDSTEADS, ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE FRAMEWORK OF
SPRING MATTRESSES," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is so to construct a metallic bedstead that
the ordinary laths forming the support for the mattress are dispensed
with, and the sides and ends of the framework of the bedstead are

page_text: modified and strengthened so as to constitute a rigid support for a spring
mattress.
In carrying my Invention into practical effect I construct the sides
and ends of the framework with a cast-iron boss or projection midway
between their extremities, and in this boss or projection I form dovetail
recesses at a suitable angle to receive corresponding dovetails at the
extremities of diagonal rods, which are designed to strengthen or brace
together the sides and ends of the framework and so prevent their
bending inwards or outwards when the weight is brought to bear upon
the mattress, which is stretched upon such framework..
In addition to the diagonal rods herein-before mentioned I sometimes
employ a transverse rod with similar dovetails at its extremities taking
into corresponding recesses in the bosses or projections on the sides of
my improved framework.
My improvements further relate to the method of joining the sides
and ends of the framework to the corner pillars or posts of the bedstead
in order to obtain greater steadiness and rigidity between the post and
the sides and ends of the framework. For this purpose a vertical
abutment is cast from the boss carrying the dovetail upon the post, the
sides of which abutment receive the thrust from brackets formed upon
the extremities of the sides and ends of the framework.
These improvements are equally applicable in constructing a metallic
framework for spring mattresses, which are independent of the bedstead.

page_text: seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto the said William Welch, Her special licence
that I, the said William Welch, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Welch, 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 IN METALLIC
BEDSTEADS, ALSO APPLICABLE TO THE FRAMEWORK OF SPRING MATTRESSES," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Welch, my exe-
cutors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Welch, 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 :—
The object of this Invention is so to construct a metallic bedstead that
the ordinary laths forming the support for the mattress are dispensed
with, and the sides and ends of the framework of the bedstead are
modified and strengthened so as to constitute a rigid support for a spring
mattress.
'
In carrying my Invention into practical effect I construct the sides
and ends of the framework with a cast-iron boss or projection midway
between their extremities, and in this boss or projection I form dovetail
recesses at a suitable angle to receive corresponding dovetails at the
extremities of diagonal rods, which are designed to strengthen or brace
together the sides and ends of the framework, and so prevent the
bending inwards or outwards when the weight is brought to bear upon
the mattress which is stretched upon such framework.
In addition to the diagonal rods herein-before mentioned I sometimes
employ a transverse rod with similar dovetails at its extremities taking

page_text: into corresponding recesses in the bosses or projections on the sides of
my improved framework.
My improvements further relate to the method of joining the sides
and ends of the framework to the corner pillars, or posts of the bedstead
in order to obtain greater steadiness and rigidity between the post and
the sides and ends of the framework. For this purpose a vertical
abutment is cast from the boss carrying the dovetail upon the post, the
sides of which abutment receive the thrust from brackets formed upon
the extremities of the sides and ends of the framework.
These improvements are equally applicable in constructing a metallic
framework for spring mattresses which are independent of the bedstead.
In order that this my said Invention may be more clearly understood
and more readily carried into practical effect, I have hereunto annexed a
Sheet of Drawings illustrative of my improvements, in which Fig. 1 is a
side view, and Fig. 2 a plan of a bedstead having my improvements
applied thereto; Fig. 3 is an end sectional view of Fig. 2 through the
These three views are
line a, b, looking in the direction of the arrows.
drawn to a scale of about one inch and a half to the foot. Fig. 4 is a
full sized plan of so much of one of the sides and pillars of a bedstead
constructed according to my Invention as is necessary to explain my
improvements in securing the angle iron sides and ends to the pillars of
a bedstead and steadying them in position, the two parts being shewn
disjointed in order to render the construction more intelligible; and
Fig. 5 is a side view of Fig. 4 looking in the direction of the arrow (c).
Similar letters marked on the several views are used to denote similar
parts.
In all the views A, A, are the angle iron sides, and B, B, the angle
iron ends of the bedstead. These sides and ends are each constructed
with a cast-iron boss or projection C midway between their extremities,
having recesses formed in them corresponding to the dovetails at the
extremities of the diagonal rods D, which when in position, as illustrated,
serve to brace together and strengthen the sides and ends of the
framework, and so obviate any tendency to bend when the weight is
brought to bear upon the spring mattress, which is stretched upon such
framework. The transverse rod E at its two extremities takes into
similar dovetailed recesses formed in the boss or projection C on the

page_text: sides A, A, as illustrated, and so lends additional strength to the
framework.
I would here observe that these diagonal stays are equally applicable
in constructing a metallic framework for a spring mattress, which is
independent of the bedstead.
The extremities of the sides A, A, are according to this Invention
formed with a bracket F, seen more clearly in Fig. 5, rising above the
level of the upper surface of the angle iron or top of the ordinary
socket G in order that such bracket may abut against the post or pillar H
of the bedstead, for which purpose the extremity of such bracket is
either shaped to correspond with the pillar and boss of the pillar, as
illustrated, or a plain vertical abutment may be formed upon the pillar
to receive the correspondingly shaped end of such bracket. This method
of jointing the angle iron sides to the pillar of a bedstead is designed to
form a steadier and more rigid joint than has hitherto been practicable,
and is equally applicable to jointing the angle iron ends to the pillar,
but when it is required to have the top of the angle iron ends of a
bedstead raised above the height of the sides for the purpose of
imparting a bowed appearance to the elastic surface (forming the spring
mattress) stretched upon it I prefer to have the top of the angle iron all
on a level, as illustrated in Fig. 3, with its extremities abuting against
the pillars of the bedstead, and to form the sockets for jointing to the
pillars upon brackets depending from the angle iron, as seen in Fig. 3.
Although I prefer to construct the angle iron sides and ends of my
improved bedstead entirely of malleable iron it will be obvious that the
bosses or projections C and the brackets and sockets at the extremities
of the sides and ends may be made of ordinary cast iron, and either
chilled upon rolled angle iron in the ordinary manner or secured thereto
by bolts and rivets.
Having thus particularly described and ascertained the nature of this
my said Invention, together with the best methods with which I am
acquainted for carrying the same into practical effect, I wish it to be
understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details, relative
proportions, or dimensions of the various parts of the bedstead illustrated
on the accompanying Drawing, as the same may be considerably varied
without departing from the Invention, but what I claim is, the method

page_text: of bracing together the sides and ends of a metallic bedstead or metallic
framework of a spring mattress for the purpose of ensuring greater
steadiness and rigidity as described and illustrated on the accompanying
Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Welch, have hereunto 5
set my hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of June, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
four.
WILLIAM WELCH. (L.S.)