AN IMPROVED PAVEMENT
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International
Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in
the County of Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, for the Invention
of "AN IMPROVED PAVEMENT."-A communication from abroad by
Clarendon Williams and Thomas Stephens, both of the City and
State of New York. United States of America.
Sealed the 22nd May 1868, and dated the 28th January 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 28th January 1868.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office,"
No. 8, Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "AN IMPROVED PAVEMENT," a communication, to be
as follows:-
The said Invention relates to the novel construction of pavement for
streets and other thoroughfares, the materials for which comprise wood,
asphaltum, and sand, and the said Invention consists in a peculiar

page_text: A foundation of
mode of combining the several parts together.
asphaltum is surmounted by a layer or bed of sand whereon are laid
blocks of wood having dovetail grooves on the top and sides for the
reception of asphaltum or other suitable cement, which is poured while
in a fluid state into the said grooves. The blocks of wood are thus
locked or securely keyed together, the whole forming a substantial
noisless roadway impervious to the elements and easily repaired. The
wooden paving blocks are placed on end and are preferably made of
rectangular form. These dovetailed grooves are formed on their upper
surface at proper intervals. The asphaltum is allowed to harden by
cooling and then forms an inverted wedge, tending to give solidity and
durability to the paving blocks by clamping them together, preventing
vertical displacement of the blocks and protecting the edges of the
grooves from chipping or breaking. The asphaltum wears away quicker
than the wood and is kept sufficiently below the same to give a good
foot hold for horses and other draught animals. The form given to the
asphaltum is such that it cannot be removed from the paving blocks
by the traffic. Dovetail grooves are also formed around the sides of the
paving blocks. The said grooves are cut in such a manner that when
the blocks are brought in juxtaposition a double dovetailed joint groove
is formed between and around the blocks for the reception of a key of
asphalt of similar form, and serving the same object as the groove in
the face of the block as already described. Wooden tongues or keys
may be used in the grooves alone or in combination with the asphalte,
and metallic bars cemented with asphalte may be placed in the surface
grooves for additional strength. The surface grooving may be varied
at pleasure, but I prefer to make the same at right angles to the streets
with transverse grooves at the intersections of streets.
In a modification of my Invention the surface of the paving blocks
is indented by numerous small holes, the said holes and open joints
between the blocks being filled with asphaltum. The blocks are keyed
together and supported at the joints by planks, the sand and asphaltun
foundation being dispensed with.
To lay my asphaltum block pavement I excavate the roadway to the
proper depth and form and pour on the same the sub-bed or foundation
of asphaltum or concrete and allow the same to harden by cooling.
next lay over the same a bed of sand of the proper depth and roll o
press the same to the desired form. I now lay on the bed so prepare

page_text: the grooved paving blocks and by means of a heavy roller or in the
ordinary manner press the blocks on the bed of sand. I next pour the
fluid asphaltum into the grooves, allowing the same to cool. By this
means the paving blocks are firmly locked together, no displacement of
a block or portion of a block being effected by the traffic, and the
pavement being rendered water-tight. Finally, I strew over the surface
of the pavement a coating or dressing of clean sharp sand, and thus
the whole is formed into a compact mass of wood and asphaltum having
a continuous and solid though sufficiently elastic foundation. A number
of paving blocks after being grooved may be cemented together by
pouring the asphaltum into the joints so as to form sections of any
desired dimensions preparatory to laying down the same.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 27th July 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," No. 8, Southampton
Buildings, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Consulting
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the
thirty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special
licence that I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and 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 "AN IMPROVED
PAVEMENT," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William
Robert Lake, my executors 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,

page_text: 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 Robert Lake, 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:-
This Invention relates to a novel construction of a pavement for
streets and other thoroughfares, the materials for which comprise wood,
asphaltum, and sand, and the said Invention consists in a peculiar mode
of combining the several parts together, viz., by laying a foundation of
asphaltum surmounted by a layer or bed of sand on which are laid
blocks of wood having dovetail grooves for reception of the asphaltum,
which is poured while in a fluid state into the said grooves whereby the
blocks of wood are locked or securely keyed together, the whole forming
a substantial noiseless roadway impervious to the elements and easily
repaired.
To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my Invention I
will further describe the same by reference to the accompanying
Drawings forming part of this Specification, and of which Figure 1
represents a plan or top view of a pavement constructed according to
my Invention. Figure 2 is a vertical and transverse section of the
same taken on line x, x, of Figure 1. Figures 3, 4, and 5 represent
In the said Drawings A indicates
a modification of my Invention.
the asphaltum foundation; B, the bed of sand; C, the pavement
composed of wooden paving blocks E, E, etc., which are placed on
end, and which are preferably made rectangular in form. These blocks
have dovetail grooves F on their upper surfaces at proper intervals
into which the asphalt cement (or its equivalent) is poured while in
a fluid state and allowed to harden by cooling, the asphalt tongue
G forming an inverted wedge and tending thereby to give solidity
and durability to the paving blocks by clamping them together,
preventing vertical displacement of the blocks and protecting the edges
of the grooves from chipping off or breaking down, it also wears
away from the action of the horses' shoes in advance of the wood
sufficiently to give a good foot hold for draught animals, and because of
its form cannot be removed from the paving blocks by travel. H, H
are the joint dovetail grooves circumscribing the paving blocks, also

page_text: filled with asphaltum, locking the several blocks together by dovetail
keys I, I, between and around the paving blocks. These grooves are
cut in the paving blocks by gang saws running on the same shaft, the
circumscribing groove being cut half dovetailed or L-shaped rebate, so
that when the blocks are brought in juxtaposition a double dovetailed
joint groove is formed between and around the blocks for reception of
a kcy of asphalt of similar form and for the same object as the groove
in the face of the block as described. In the grooves F, H, wooden
tongues or keys may be used alone or in combination with the asphalt
with the same object as is attained with the asphalt keys alone; and
metallic bars cemented with asphalt may be placed in the surface
grooves for aditional strength against extreme travel, as shown at g, g,
if desired. The surface grooving may be varied at pleasure, while I
prefer the parallel grooving d at right angles to the streets, and
transverse grooves d' at the intersections of streets.
The modification of my Invention represented in Figures 3, 4, and 5,
shows the surface of the paving blocks indented by numerous small
holes k, the said holes and open joints being filled with asphaltum.
The blocks keyed together at m and supported at the joints by planks n
dispensing with the sand and asphaltum foundation.
To lay my asphaltum block pavement I excavate the roadway to the
proper depth and form and pour on the same the sub-bed or foundation
of asphaltum A (or its equivalent concrete) and allow the same to
harden by cooling. I next overlay the same with a bed of sand B to
the proper depth and roll or press the same to the desired form. I now
lay on the bed so prepared the grooved paving blocks (breaking joints)
and by means of a heavy roller or in the ordinary manner press the
blocks on the bed of sand; I next pour the fluid asphaltum into the
grooves F, H, allowing the same to cool. By this means the paving
blocks are firmly locked together, and no displacement of a block or
portion of a block effected by travel, and the pavement rendered water-
tight, and finally I strew over the surface of the pavement a coating
or dressing of clean sharp sand, and thus the whole is formed into a
compact mass of wood and asphaltum having a continuous and solid
though sufficiently elastic foundation. These paving blocks although
locked and bound together as described are easily removed for repairs
by cutting or melting with hot irons the composition in the joint
grooves, the foundation broken up, and the pavement replaced in the

page_text: manner specified. Furthermore, a number of paving blocks after being
grooved may be cemented together by pouring the asphaltum into the
joints so as to form sections of any desired dimensions preparatory to
laying the same.
Having described my Invention, what I claim and desire to secure
by Letters Patent is, the combination herein described for a street
pavement substantially as and for the purposes set forth, viz. :-
1st. I claim the foundation composed of the sub-bed A and stratum
or layer of sand B for the purpose specified.
2nd. I claim the surface grooves F, and sectional or circumscribing
double dovetailed grooves H in a wooden paving block, substantially as
and for the purpose specified.
3rd. I claim the dovetail keys G, I, composed of asphalt, wood, or
metal separately or together, substantially as and for the purposes
specified.
4th. I claim uniting the paving blocks into pieces of portable arca
preparatory to laying the same in sections, substantially as and for the
purpose set forth and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of July, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.S.)
Witness,
THO. N. PALMER,
Clerk to Messrs. Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
8, Southampton Buildings,
W.C.