IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF Box IRONS
Year: 1865

page_text: In the Matter of Letters Patent granted to JOHN WHITEHOUSE, of
Tipton, in the County of Stafford, Ironfounder, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF Box IRONS," bearing
date the Fifteenth day of September, One thousand eight hundred
and sixty-five, (Number 2358).
DISCLAIMER AND MEMORANDUM OF ALTERATION proposed to be
entered by John Whitehouse.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
WHITEHOUSE, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her Majesty Queen Victoria by Her Letters Patent, under the
Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, bearing
date the Fifteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-five, granted unto me the said John Whitehouse,
the sole privilege to make use, exercise, and vend my Invention therein
entitled "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF Box IRONS," within the said
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and
Isle of Man, during the term of fourteen years thence next ensuing, upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Whitehouse, should by
an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same instrument to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next after the date of the said
Letters Patent:

page_text: And whereas in pursuance of the said condition I did by a Specification,
under my hand and seal,, bearing date the Twelfth day of March, One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six, particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner it was to be performed, and
did cause the same Specification to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
the time and in manner prescribed by the said condition and Letters Patent :
"
And whereas since the filing of the said Specification I have ascertained
that it is doubtful whether some of the improvements described and claimed
in the said Specification are new, and I am therefore desirous of amending
the said Specification, and I do hereby amend the same by disclaiming and
strieking out from the Queen's Printers' copy of the said Specification the
whole of that part of the description commencing with the words "the top,"
in line 22, p. 3 of such copy down to the word "with," in line 30 of the same
page, and I insert instead thereof the following words :" Instead of making
"the top or lid to take off and on as has been done heretofore, I hinge the
same upon the body of the box at the front end or at the back thereof."
And I alter the claim at set forth at the end of the said. Specification by
striking out that part commencing with the words "the several" occurring
in line 16, p. 54 of the said copy down to the end of the said Specification,
and I insert instead thereof, the words and claims following, that is to say:
"First. Constructing box irons so that the top or lid shall be hinged upon
- at the
^
"the body at the front end or back thereof as herein described and shewn
in the Drawing."
.66
:
“Second. Constructing the heater for box irons with indentations formed
on its surface so that parts only of the heater come against the bottom of
"the box as described under the second head of my Invention."
.66
"Third. The use of guards for box irons as described and shewn; in the
Drawing in combination with the hinged lids as above set forth, but not
" otherwise.".
Fourth: The use of loops as described and shewn in the Drawing in
"combination with the heaters as above set forth, but not otherwise.".
66
Fifth. Constructing the grating for charcoal box irons, as herein-before
"set forth and described and shewn in the Drawing."
NOW KNOW..YE, that I do not claim box irons, the top, or lid of which takes
off, and. on, and guards for box irons except in combination with hinged. lids
made as described and shewn in the Drawings of my Specification, and wire
.loops, except in combination with heaters, made as described and shewn in the
Drawings of my Specification.
:
.
. I

page_text: And my said Specification when amended by Disclaimer and Memorandum
of "Alteration will read 'as follows:-
mybai
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME; I, JOHN
WHITEHOUSE, of Tipton, in the County of Stafford, Ironfounder,: send greeting.
"WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in. the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant. unto me, the
said John Whitehouse, Her special license that I, the said John Whitehouse, "
my executors, ádministrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John
Whitehouse, 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 THE
MANUFACTURE OF Box IRONS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said John Whitehouse, my executors or administrators, by. an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that' I, the said John Whitehouse, 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 (that is to say):
.
The object of this Invention is to construct box irons in an improved manner
a's herein-after explained so that they may better answer the purpose for which
they are designed.
The first part of my Invention relates to the "box." The body of the box.
is hollow as usual, and is generally made the same shape as customary, but
instead of an open space being left at the back for a sliding door the whole-
body (except the top or-lid thereof) is cast in one piece. Instead of making:
the top or lid to take off and on, as has been done heretofore, I hinge the same-
upon the body of the box iron at the front end or at the back thereof... The
handlé may be of wood as usual; but underneath it I'propose to place a guard
which consists of a sheet of thin metal, the object of which is to prevent the
heat which is emitted from the heater from burning the hand of the person
using the iron as is so often the case with the box irons in common. use..

page_text: When the box iron is of brass, the guard should be of brass also, but when
made of iron the guard may be of tin, or any other suitable metal may be
employed.
./
The second part of my Invention relates to the 'construction of the heater.
Hitherto this has been merely a piece of flat metal, but according to my
Invention the heater is so made that it is provided at the top with a wire loop,
which is cast in the metal, and by means of which the beater is easily placed
in or removed from the box. The bottom of the heater is not a flat surface
as usual, but on its surface are cast indentations, so that certain parts only of
the heater come against the bottom of the box. In this manner a more.
graduated degree of heat is emitted from the heater than if the whole surface
thereof were to come against the bottom of the box.
I fit charcoal box irons with the same joint or hinge as the box irons with
heaters. The hinge may be placed either in the front of the pipe or at.the
back of the box over that part where the handle is placed.
The grating in charcoal box irons has hitherto being so constructed as to heat
only part of the bottom plate of the box, but according to my improvements
the grating which is to contain the charcoal covers the whole of the bottom
plate, so that the heat is evenly distributed over the whole of the bottom plate
of the box. This said grating is also provided with feet upon which it stands.
That my Invention may be better understood I have annexed Drawings
thereof, which I now proceed to describe.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a box iron constructed after the method
described in the first part of my Invention and suitable for a heater. a is the
body of the box iron having a hinge & at its front end by which is attached
the lid or top c. A screw or pin d holds the other end of the lid when closed,
or if preferred the hinge may be placed at the opposite end of the box when
the position of the screw or pin d will of course be exactly reversed. The
handle e is attached in the usual manner and a curved guard f is fixed under-
neath the handle to intercept the radiated. heat.
Fig. 2 shews a plan of the guard.
Fig. 3 is a plan, and Fig. 4 is a section of the heater as described in the
second part of my Invention; g is the block of metal baving a wire loop h
cast in it, the part immediately underneath the wire loop being hollowed out
as at i, so that the heater may be lifted by a hook... The bottom of the heater
(not shewn) is not flat but has indentations formed in it, so that certain
parts only touch the bottom of the box. iron, thereby giving a more gradual
degree of heat.
The third part of my Invention is shewn in Fig. 5 which is a section through

page_text: a:charcoal box iron..a is the body of, the box iron to which the lid or cover
is hinged at b. Upon the lid is cast,the chimney c., and the, handle dis
attached in the usual manner; a screw or pin e holds the lid when closed, or
if preferred the hinge may be placed at the opposite end of the box when the,
position of the screw or pin e E will of course, correspond; f is the grate which
is the full size of the box iron. It consists of a plate perforated for the
admission of air and is supported at one end or at both ends by feet g; his the
opening in the box iron for the admission of air, and it is opened or closed by
the hinged lid i; j is the curved guard fixed underneath the handle in order
intercept the radiated heat as herein-before explained.
dir
I also fit tailors or "goose " irons with the same joint or hinge as those just
described as applied to box irons with heaters and charcoal box irons, and place
the said joint or hinge in a similar position...
may be
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in
which the same may be performed, I wish it to be understood that without
limiting myself to the precise details herein-before described (as these
varied or modified to some.extent without departing from the nature of my
said Invention), I desire to claim as the, Invention to be protected by the
herein-before in part recited Letters Patent;
First. Constructing box irons so that the top or lid shall be hinged upon
the body at the front end or at the back thereof as herein described and shewn
in the Drawings.
Second. Constructing the heater for box irons with indentations formed on
its surface so that parts only of the heater come against the bottom of the box
as described under the second head of Invention.
my
Third. The use of guards for box irons as described and shewn in the
Drawing in combination with the hinged lids as above set forth, but not
otherwise.
Fourth. The use of loops as described and shewn in the Drawing in com-
bination with the heater as above set forth, but not otherwise.
Fifth. Constructing the grating for charcoal box irons as herein-before set
forth and described and shewn in the Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Whitehouse, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twelfth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
J. WHITEHOUSE. (L.B.)

page_text: And J; the said John Whitehouse, do further declare that the above written
Disclaimer is not nor is any part thereof intended to extend the exclusive
right granted by the said Letters Patent, and that these Presents shall not
extend the exclusive right in any way whatsoever.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Whitehouse, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Eighth day of April, One thousand eight
hundred and sixty-eight.