IMPROVEMENTS IN GATES
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Allen at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st August 1883.
RICHARD ALLEN, of Tettenhall near Wolverhampton in the County of Stafford,
builder, IMPROVEMENTS IN GATES"
EE
The object of this Invention is to construct a gate, partly of iron and partly of
wood, in such a manner as that the said gate shall be cheap and strong and readily
put together and taken to pieces. Such gate is intended chiefly for field use, but
may be employed for other purposes, such as for entrances to drives etc.
A gate constructed according to this Invention has a head and heel of wood
with horizontal, bars of wrought iron, and in addition thereto a diagonal piece of
wood tenoned into the lower end of the heel and into the upper end of the head,
above the top bar of the gate, and also two shorter diagonals of wood, namely, one
tenoned into the heel somewhat below the middle thereof and rising to somewhat
above the top bar about the middle thereof, and the other tenoned into the head
somewhat above the middle thoreof and passing somewhat below the bottom bar
about the middle thereof. All the horizontal bars pass through the diagonals. The
top bar is formed solid with, or is fixed rigidly to, the hinge eyo, which
consequently acts as a bead to such bar, and passes through tho heel and head and
is fixed with a nut on a part projecting through the head. The bottom bar passes
also through the heel and head and is fixed with a nut at each end. The
intermediate bars enter only a part of the way into the heel and head, respectively,
and thus act as distance pieces against the screwing up of the top and bottom
bars. An intermediate bar is placed a short distance under the top bar to lend
additional strength to such top bar and thus permit of a smaller top bar than
usual being employed, with consequently a lesser weakening of the woodwork

page_text: through which it passes, and to reduce the space usually left between the top bar
and that immediately below.
A gate constructed as above described is very cheap and strong, none of the
wrought iron work being riveted. It is readily put together by an unskilled
person and may therefore be bundled in pieces for transit. It may be taken to
pieces again by simply unscrewing the nuts on the outer ends of the top and
bottom bars. In case of the woodwork decaying or becoming otherwise damaged
it is easily removed and replaced by new woodwork. The diagonal being carried
to the top of the head, as described, adds greatly to the strength of that part of the
head above the top bar and prevents it being as readily broken as in the ordinary
construction of wooden gate.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Richard Allen in the Patent Office on the 31st January 1884.
RICHARD ALLEN, of Tettenhall near Wolverhampton in the county of Stafford,
builder, "IMPROVEMENTS IN GATES”
The object of this invention is to construct a gate, partly of iron (or other
metal) and partly of wood, in such a mannor as that the said gate shall be cheap
and strong and readily put together and taken to pieces. Such gato is intended
chiefly for field use and similar purposes, being specially useful for level railway
crossings, but may be employed for other purposes such as for entrances to
drives eto and generally where gates are required.
A gate constructed according to this invention has a head and heel of wood
with horizontal bars of wrought iron, and, in addition thereto, a diagonal piece of
wood tennoned into the lower end of the heel, and into the upper end of the head
above the top bar of the gate, and also two shorter diagonals of wood, namely, one
tennoned through the heel somewhat below the middle thereof and rising to
somewhat above the top bar about the middle thereof, and the other tennoned
through the head somewhat above the middle thereof and passing somewhat below
the bottom bar about the middle thereof. All the horizontal bars pass through the
diagonals. The top bar is formed, solid with, or is fixed rigidly to, the bingo eye,
which consequently acts as a head to such bar, or the bar may have a head distinct
from the hinge eye, and this bar passes through the heel and head of the gate and
is fixed with a nut on a part projecting through the head of the gate. The bottom
bar bas a head at its inner end and passes also through the boel and head of the
gate and is fixed with a nut at the outer end. The intermediate bars enter only
a part of the way into the heel and head, respectively, and thus act as distance
pieces against the screwing up of the top and bottom bars. An intermediate bar is
placed a short distance under the top bar to lend additional strength to such top
bar, and thus permit of a smaller top bar than usual being employed, with
consequently a lesser weakening of the woodwork through which it passes, and
to reduce the space usually left between the top bar and that immediately below.
This gate may be modified somewhat in respect of the woodwork intermediate
between the head and heel thereof, as will be presently explained.
Having thus stated the nature of my said invention, I will now proceed to more
particularly describe and ascertain the manner of performing the same with
reference to the accompanying drawings, of which figure 1 is a front elevation of a
gate constructed according to this invention and with the woodwork intermediato
between the head and heel arranged in the manner I usually prefer. Figuro 2 is
an end elevation shewing the head flatways, and figure 3 is a plan of the heel end
shewing the hinge connection with the post. The same letters of reference
occurring upon any two or all of these views indicate corresponding parts. A is
the head and B the heel, both of them being of wood. Cis the top bar, D the
bottom bar, and a a etc: the intermediate bars, all of them being of iron (or other
metal). E is a diagonal piece of wood tennoned into the hoad just abovo the top
bar and into the heel just below the bottom bar. F F¹ are pieces of wood parallel
to the diagonal-piece E. The piece F is tennoned through the heel, as shewn, and
rises above the top bar, and the piece F' is tennoned through the head, as shown,
and passes down below the botton bar. The eye 6 for the upper binge is formed
preferably solid with the top bar C and acts as a head thereto. The bottom bar D
has a head c at its inner end, and both the top and bottom bars have nuts d d at
their. outer ends, as shown. The bars a a etc: pass only part of the way into the
head and heel, respectively, and act as distance-pieces to the head and heel of the
gate as the nuts d d are screwed up. All the bars pass through the intermediate

page_text: wood work, as shewn. The topmost bar of those lettered a is placed a short.
distance below the top bar C to lend additional strength thereto, and thus permit of
such bar being of a lesser diameter than usual, with consequently a lesser weakening
of the woodwork of the gate, and also to reduce the space usually left between the
top bar and that immediately below. In cases where the bar C would usually
be 11 inches diameter for gates of ordinary construction, I make it for my gate
7/ths of an inch diameter.
A cheaper class of gate constructed according to this invention is illustrated by
figure 4. The only difference between this gate and the one already described is
in the intermediate woodwork, which consists, in this case, of two slanting picces
tennoned at their lower ends to the head and heel, respectively, and at their upper
ends to a central vertical piece.
The two bars which have the nuts thereon for fastening together the head and
heel of the gato need not necessarily be the top and bottom bars, though such
arrangement is preferred. More than two bars also may be employed for this
purpose if desired.
These gates may of course be used in pairs to form double gates if desired, in
which case the nuts at the outer ends of the bars may be countersunk into the
woodwork.
A gate constructed as above described is very cheap and strong, none of the
wrought ironwork being riveted. It is readily put together by an unskilled
person and may therefor be bundled in pieces for transit. It may be taken to
pieces again by simply unscrowing the nuts on the outer ends of the top and
bottom bars, when the tennons are readily drawn out of the mortises and the
bars from the woodwork, as there are no screwed parts besides the long through
bars, and no nails need be employed. In case of the woodwork decaying, or
becoming otherwise damaged, it is easily removed and replaced by new wood work.
The diagonal being carried to the top of the head, as described, with reference to
figure 1, adds greatly to the strength of that part of the head above the top bar,
and prevents it being as readily broken as in the ordinary construction of wooden
gate.
Having now stated the nature of my said invention and particularly described
and ascortained the manner of performing the same, I declare that what I claim
as my invention and desire to secure by the hereinbefore in part recited letters
patent, is:-
1. In a gate, the combination of the metal bars C and D having heads and nuts
thercon to form bolts, with the metal distance bars a a ctc: and wooden head A
and heel B, substantially as herein described and shewn by the drawings, and for
the purposo set forth.
2nd The combination of parts forming the complete gato constructed partly of
metal and partly of wood, substantially as herein described and illustrated by
figures 1, 2, and 3 of the accompanying drawings and for the purpose set forth.
In witness whereof I the said Richard Allen have hereunto set my
hand and seal this thirtieth day of January in the year of Our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty four.
RICHARD ALLEN (L.S.)
Witness:-
JOHN THOM,
Clerk to Stephen Watkins Assoc. M. Inst C.E.
Office for Patents
Wolverhampton