IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ECONOMICAL CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS, ALSO IN RENDERING THEM MORE SECURE FROM FIRE AND DAMP. AND IN PRESERVING THEM FROM DECAY
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin Nicoll, of Regent Street, in the County
of Middlesex, Shirt Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE ECONOMICAL CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS, ALSO IN RENDERING THEM
MORE SECURE FROM FIRE AND DAMP. AND IN PRESERVING THEM FROM DECAY."
Sealed the 9th April 1868, and dated the 12th October 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin Nicoll at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 12th
October 1867.
I, BENJAMIN NICOLL. of Regent Street, in the County of Middlesex,
Shirt Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ECONOMICAL CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS. ALSO IN RENDERING
THEM MORE SECURE FROM FIRE AND DAMP. AND IN PRESERVING THEM FROM DECAY."
to be as follows:-
This Invention has reference to the economical construction of buildings,
also to the rendering of parts of such buildings more durable and more proof
against fire and damp.
In carrying out my Invention I sometimes construct the outer and inner
walls or partitions, roof, and other parts of straw or other like fibrous material
which is stitched into the form of a web or sheet on a large stitching machine
adapted to the purpose (but which forms no part of iny present Invention), I
insert iron bars in the straw and rivet them into angle iron frames, the ends

page_text: of the straw cement to the iron frames with asphalte or other equivalent.
I then soak the web or slab thus formed in milk of lime mixed with silicate
of soda or other mixture capable of rendering combustible materials less
inflammable; it is then put on to a press, and when dry I cover it with asphalte
or similar material on one or both sides, laid on with a moveable scraper ;
after this it is again pressed, and it then receives a second coat of the same
material, the scraper being so set up as to leave one uniforin thickness to
receive the finishing coats; I then sprinkle this surface while hot with stones,
sand, or other like substances, which are afterwards pressed in by a roller or
otherwise so as to form a key for the finishing coat or coats of cement, which
last coats I prefer putting on when the slabs which form the buildings have
been bolted together. These slabs for cheap purposes I claim using without
the iron bars and frame.
In planning a building the walls, roofs, and partitions of which are intended
to be constructed of these slabs 1 prefer to arrange the same so that the main
girders which support the floors and roof may rest at one end on the concrete
of which I construct the chimneys, and at the side of or at the opposite end in
the uprights or frames which rise from the base for the reception of the
windows or doors, by which I secure firm and solid supports for the girders
according to the size of the floor, and upon these girders I lay transversely
thereto a number of 1-iron bars at less intervals than the spaces between the
girders; between these iron bars I introduce wood slabs as hereafter described.
I sometimes construct the walls of buildings of concrete by the aid of
frames or moulds somewhat after the manner of what is known as pisé work.
I use vertical boards in lieu of horizontal ones for the side frames, and support
these boards side by side upon Lor | irons, or upon, or in ledges or grooves
of wood or other suitable material, but I.prefer to use L or irons secured
to ordinary scaffold poles, the frame being thus supported by the said poles or
supports in lieu of by the wall itself as heretofore.
I employ boards by preference of sufficient length to enable me to complete
the height of a room or storey without any shifting of the apparatus. These
wall I prefer to make or mould hollow from bottom to top during the process
of formation by introducing suitable cores of wood, which I propose to coat
with asphalte and sometimes to grease on the surface in order to facilitate the
withdrawal of the cores. By this means the drying of the walls is greatly
facilitated and expedited. I also in some cases apply asphalte to the inner
surfaces of the boards between which the walls are constructed. I also some-
times place in the said moulds or against the inner faces of the vertical boards
a sheet or sheets of the damp proof fibrous slabs herein-before described in

page_text: order that they may adhere to the concrete wall and form the inner surface
thereof, thus enabling the inner surfaces to be finished off without waiting for
the rest of the wall to dry. Some of the hollow passages left in the walls
herein-before described may be used for the reception of pipes, bell wires,
speaking tubes, and other fittings. They will also answer well for ventilating
purposes, openings being left behind the skirtings to afford access to the said
hollow ways or passages.
In producing the projecting parts of buildings, such as corners, dressings for
windows and doors, sides of fire-places, and skirtings, I splash on to such
parts stones or other suitable materials mixed with lime or cement, a frame of
wood or metal of the desired form or contour surrounding or enclosing the
parts to be splashed. These splashed portions are subsequently finished up
with a trowel and cement or plaster. This system of splashing admits of
one or morecoats or layers being applied,and allows the surface to dry quickly,
leaving a good key for the finishing coats of plaster. The same system may
be employed for increasing the thickness of the slabs berein-before described.
When the surface is required to be waterproof I mix more or less grease or
fatty matter with the lime and stones before splashing on the mixture.
I construct wood slabs for floors, roofs, and other parts of buildings by the
aid of an iron-framed surface plate for clamping together and levelling two or
more pieces of wood, and when in this position I pour on a mixture of asphalte
or other equivalent with or without grit or small stones of a sufficient thickness
to hold the pieces of wood together. For the ground floor I use mortar or
cement to set the slabs formed as above into the ground; such slabs when
intended for ground floors may be composed of any small pieces of wood. T
leave a small I space between each slab into which any waterproof material
may be poured or inserted so as to render the floor damp proof. When the
flcor is required to be made fireproof or partially so, I soak the surface with
sillicate of soda, which stains the surface and improves its appearance. When
these slabs are used for upper floors I sometimes attach a sheet or web of the
stitched fibrous material herein-before described to the surface of the asphalte
while hot, which adhering to it when reversed it forms the ceiling of the room
beneath it and is a non-conductor of sound. In this form I sometimes use it
for roof purposes for covering the fibrous material with a waterproof material
for the outer surface. such as asphalted stones. For flat roofs I cover the
asphalted surface with concrete. I also use these wooden slabs for the treads
of stairs and for doors when sound is required to be kept out.
1 propose to employ for coating, or washing, and coloring the interior of
buildings, and for cementing wood, iron, and glass, to various parts of buildings

page_text: and for preserving wood, cement, or stone from decay, a peculia compound
consisting of a basic hydrated oxychloride of magnesium obtained by slacking
magnesia with a solution of chloride of magnesium, to which I add powdered
flint, water bring also added to bring the compound to the required
consistency.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Benjamin Nicoll in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
11th April 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BENJAMIN
NICOLL, of Regent Street, in the County of Middlesex. Shirt Manufacturer,
send greeting.
WHEREAS er most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twelth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Benjamin Nicoll, Her special license that I, the said Benjamin Nicoll, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others asl, the said Benjamin
Nicoll, my executors, administrators, or 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 ECONOMICAL
CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS, ALSO IN RENDERING THEM MORE SECURE FROM FIRE
OR DAMP. AND IN PRESERVING THEM FROM DECAY," upon the condition (amongst
others) that 1, the said Benjamin Nicoll,myexecutors or administrators, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Benjamin Nicoll, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say :-
My said Invention has reference to the economical construction of buildings,

page_text: also to the rendering of parts of such buildings more durable and more proof
against fire and damp.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood I shall now
proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall
refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheets of Drawings, the same
letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the corresponding
Figures.
Figure 1 on Sheet 1 of my Drawings represents a sectional elevation of the
skeleton iron framing of a house or building intended to be constructed in
accordance with my said Invention.
Figures 2 and 3 represent respectively a detailed elevation and horizontal
section of portions of two angle iron framed slabs herein-after described, and
the mode of joining such slabs together.
Figure 4 on Sheet 2 of my Drawings represents a sectional elevation of the
same skeleton framing looking at right angles to Figure 1, and shewing a
concrete chimney or flue breast.
In carrying out my Invention I sometimes construct the outer and inner
walls or partitions, roof, and other parts of the building of straw or like fibrous
materials A (Figures 1, 2 and 3) which is stitched into the form of a web or
sheet on a large stitching machine adapted to the purpose, but which forms
no part of my present Invention. In order to increase the stability and
portability of the slabs I insert iron bars B in the straw and rivet them into
the angle iron frame C, as shewn in Figures 2 and 3, each slab being thus
complete in itself. The ends of the straw I cement to the iron frames C with
asphalte or other equivalent; I then soak the slab or pannel at this stage of
its manufacture in milk of line mixed with silicate of soda for the purpose
of rendering the straw or other fibrous materials less inflammable. I have
found that one quart of silicate of soda mixed with two quarts of milk of litae
and two gallons of water will give a good result; the slab is then put into a
press in order to consolidate the straw, and when dry I cover it with asphalte
or similar material on one or both sides. The surrounding iron frame C of
the slab enables me to apply asphalte on one or both sides of the slabs before
such slabs are erected or bolted together. The asphalte may be applied either
by hand, so as to leave a rough surface or key for the subsequent coat or coats
of cement which are to be laid or splashed thereon after the slabs have been
erected or bolted together; or I may use in some cases a straight edged
scraper for applying an even coating of asphalte to one or both surfaces
of the slabs. After receiving the first coat of asphalte the slab is again
pressed, and it then receives a second coat of the same material, the scraper

page_text: when used being so set up as to leave one uniform thickness to receive the
finishing coats of cement. The dotted lines in Figure 1 indicate the thickness
of the walls when the finishing coats of plaster or cement have been applied.
This thickness may of course be varied as required.
In planning a building the walls, roofs, and partitions of which are intended
to be constructed of the slabs above described as shewn in Figures 1,2,3, and 4,
I prefer to arrange the same so that the main girders D and D', Figures 1
and 4, which support the floor E and roof F respectively may rest at one end
in the concrete G, Figure 4, of which I construct the chimnies, and at the
opposite end on the main uprights or supports H of the general framing
which are situate opposite to the said concrete chimney breast. The several
vertical supports or uprights may be rivetted at their lower ends to cast-iron
shoes embedded in concrete, as shewn in Figures 1 and 4. Cast-iron shoes
or sockets I, II, are also rivetted to the angle-iron uprights Hand H for the
reception of the ends of the girders D and D', and when as in Figures 1
and 4 a second story is required the sockets or shoes I serve to carry the
lower ends of the next upper set of vertical supports or uprights which
are rivetted or bolted thereto. In some cases where the positions of the windows
and doors will admit I support one end of the girders 1) on the wood or iron
uprights which serve to carry the window and door frames. By this method
of construction I secure firm and solid supports for the girders according
to the size of the floor; upon these girders | lay transversely thereto a
number of 1-iron bars K, Figures 1 and 4, and between these 1-iron bars I
introduce wood slabs L constructed as hereafter described in order to form
the upper floor E.
If desired the building may be composed either wholly or partly of slabs
of prepared straw or other like fibrous material constructed and bolted
together as herein-before described, but I also propose according to another
part of my Invention to construct the walls of buildings of concrete by the aid
of frames or moulds somewhat after the manner of what is known as pisê
work. use vertical boards in lieu of horizontal ones for the side frames
and support; these boards side by side upon L or U irons, or upon or in
ledges or grooves of wood or other suitable material, but I prefer to use Lor
U irons secured to ordinary scaffold poles, the frame being thus supported by
the said poles or supports in lieu of by the wall itself as heretofore.
I employ for moulding the outer surface of the wall boards, by preference
of sufficient length to enable me to complete the height of one or more floors
or stories without any shifting of such boards. These boards will be put up and
taken down somewhat after the manner of shop shutters, so that by increasing

page_text: or diminishing their number concrete walls of any desired length may be
made or moulded without reference to the length of such boards, which will
depend only on the height of the wall or section to be moulded.
Figure 5 (Sheet 3) represents a sectional elevation ofmy improved apparatus
as adapted to the moulding of two concrete walls forming a right angle which
may be considered as constituting one corner of a building. Figure 6 is a
corresponding sectional plan of the same taken along the line 1, 2, in Figure5;
and Figure 7 is a detail plan of the top U-iron for holding the upper ends of
the outer set of vertical boards. In these Figures A, A, are a number of
vertical boards forming the surface, against which the outer face of the
concrete wall is moulded; B, B, are another set of vertical boards, against
which the inner face of the wall is moulded, the space C left between these
two sets of vertically disposed boards corresponding to the desired thickness of
wall. The boards A, A, are fitted side byside in Land U-irons marked Dand
E respectively at the bottom and top of the said boards. The U-irons E are
secured to the ordinary scaffold poles F (one of such poles being erected at
each of the main projecting angles of the building) by the aid of brackets G
clipped on to the poles, and the iron bar should be bent or shaped to suit
the general direction of the wall, as shewn clearly in Figure 7. The L-irons 1).
on which the lower ends of the boards rest may either be secured to the
scaffold poles or may simply rest on the concrete bed or foundation of the
building.
Figure 6 represents more clearly the mode of arranging the boards A, B,
so as to produce an external buttress or an internal recess, as shewn at H;
this recess may be formed into a hollow passage for the reception of flue pipes,
bell wires, or other fittings, or to form a ventilating or air shaft by simply
closing the
open
front of the recess with one or more of the slabs herein-before
described. The inner set of boards B are maintained at the proper distance
from the outer boards and held in position by longitudinal battens or planks I,
through which and through the wall and outer set of boards and corresponding
battens 1' on the outer side are passed the metal tie pieces K secured or
tightened up by keys or wedges L; the outer batteus lare secured by bolts
at each end to the scaffold poles as shewn at a, a, in Figures 5 and 6. The
openings for door and window frames may be formed by introducing suitable
sized cores or moulds between the two sets of boards A, B, or the window
and door frames themselves may be built in their places at the time of making
the wall, as shewn at M (Figures 5 and 6); but as these frames which may be
of metal or wood (I have shewn a metal frame at M, Figures 5 and 6) need
not extend entirely through the wall, a core N will be required in addition

page_text: thereto for the facility of introducing and consolidating the concrete under-
neath the cores, and for the general filling in of the concrete; the inner
boards B may be made in short lengths, one length being adjusted on to the
top of another as the height of the work progresses by metal dowels and
longitudinal strips or battens, which latter are fitted along the joint to prevent
bulging of the ends of the boards at that part, as shewn at O, Figure 5.
These concrete walls may be moulded hollow from bottom to top during the
process of formation if desired by introducing suitable cores of wood which I
propose to coat with asphalte and sometimes to grease on the surface in order
to facilitate the withdrawal of the cores, but I prefer to form the hollow in
the walls by first making recesses H therein, and then closing the front
of the recesses as herein-before described. By making them hollow the
drying of the walls is greatly facilitated and expedited. I also apply asphalte
to the inner surfaces of the vertical boards, between which the walls are
constructed.
According to another part of my Invention I construct wood slabs for
floors, roofs, and other parts of buildings by combining together two or more
pieces of wood, which are afterwards coated with asphalte or other suitable
damp-proof material. In constructing these wood flooringslabs I use an iron
framed surface plate for clamping together and levelling the several pieces of
wood, and when so clamped and levelled I pour on a mixture of asphalte,
pitch, bitumen, or other equivalent material mixed or not with grit or small
stones, and of a sufficient consistency to hold the pieces of wood together.
Figures 8 and 9 (Sheet 1) represent respectively a plan and vertical
transverse section of one of these wooden flooring slabs L intended more
especially for upper floors clamped on the surface of the plate P, and with a
coating of asphalte b, b, applied to the surface of the several pieces of wood
which à compose the slab. A portion of a floor composed of such slabs is shewn
at Lin Figure 10 (Sheet 2). The plate P is constructed after the manner
of a printer's chase being provided with two raised ledges c, c, at right angles
to each other for the purpose of insuring the proper rectangular arrangement
of the several pieces of wood forming the slab, such pieces being firmly
clamped or pressed against the ledges c,c, by the tightening screws d working
in the stationary lugs or projections e and bearing against the metal straight
edges, f. After the asphalte has become hardened the slabis removed from
the clamping frame and is ready for use.
In making ground floors I set the slabs, formed as
mortar or cement spread over the surface to be floored.
above described, i
In some cases these
flooring slabs may be composed of a number of small or waste pieces of wond

page_text: of any regular form, as shewn at Q, Q. in Figures 10 and 11 (Sheet 2). In
setting the wooden-flooring slabs I leave a small space between each slab into
which any waterproof material may be poured or inserted so as to render the
floor damp-proof, as shown at g, g, Figures 10 and 11. If desired these
wooden slabs may be used for roofs. The edges of the pieces of wood com-
posing the said slabs may be either left square or chamfered, as shewn in the
Drawings.
According to another part of my Invention I propose to employ for coating
or washing and coloring the interior of buildings, and for cementing wood.
iron, and glass to various parts of buildings, and for preserving wood, cement,
or stone from decay, a peculiar compound consisting of a basic hydrated
oxychloride of magnesium obtained by slacking magnesia with a solution of
chloride of magnesium, to which is added powdered calcined flint, water being
also added to bring the compound to the required consistency. I have found
in practice that a good result will be obtained for general purposes by taking
equal parts by weight of the oxychloride of magnesium and calcined flint
powder, such as is used in the preparation of potteryware.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried
into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and
original and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the herein-
before in part recited Letters Patent is,-
First. The construction of slabs for building purposes composed of pressed
or consolidated straw or other suitable fibrous material secured to iron frames
in conjunction with cross bars and coated with aspbalte or other like substance,
substantially as herein-before described and illustrated by my Drawings.
Second. The rendering of the straw or other fibrous material of which the
aforesaid building slabs are partly composed less inflammable by steeping or
soaking it in or otherwise applying thereto milk of lime mixed with silicate of
soda, as herein-before described.
Third. The peculiar mode of constructing buildings by bolting to each
other, or to suitable permanent supports or frames a series of slabs con-
structed substantially in the manner herein-before described.
Fourth. The application and use to and in the production of moulded
concrete walls cf frames or moulding surfaces composed of a series of boards
disposed side by side with the joints running vertically and maintained in
position by the aid of ordinary scaffold poles, cross ties, and Land U shaped
bars ortheir equivalents,substantiallyas herein-before described and illustrated
by sheet 3 of my Drawings.

page_text: Fifth. The construction of slabs for flooring and other like purposes by
combining together two or more pieces of wood of any suitable shape, and
coating or embedding them in asphalte or other equivalent material, sub-
stantially as herein-before described.
Sixth. The application and use to and in the construction of the floors of
buildings of the aforesaid wooden slabs, as herein-before described.
Seventh. The application and use to and in the coating or washing and
colouring of the surfaces of the walls of buildings, and to the cementing of
wood, iron, and glass to various parts of buildings, also to the preserving of
wood, cement, or stone from decay, of a composition or compound consisting
of a basic hydrated oxychloride of magnesium obtained by slacking magnesia
with a solution of chloride of magnesium to which is added powdered or
ground calcined flint, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin Nicoll, have to this my Speci-
fication set my hand and seal, this Eleventh day of April, One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
B. NICOLL. (L.S.)