IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY STIRRUP BARS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Greaves, of 11, Portland Street, Poland
Street, Soho, in the County of Middlesex, Saddle Tree Maker, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY STIRRUP BARS."
Sealed the 31st October 1862, and dated the 6th May 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Greaves, at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th May 1862.
1, WILLIAM GREAVES, of 11, Portland Street, Poland Street, Soho, in the
County of Middlesex, Saddle Tree Maker, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY STIRRUP BARS," to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of safety
stirrup bar for effecting the instantaneous release of the stirrup straps in
cases where the rider is thrown and is hung in the stirrup iron. According
to this Invention the stirrup straps are suspended from the saddle tree by
means of bracket pieces or bars rivetted to the saddle tree, each bar being
provided with a spring lever bar, over which the strap hangs. These lever
bars are made with a projection or tail-piece forming an obtuse anglo with
the end where the lever bars are jointed to the fixed bar, the spring or springs
acting upon a rounded part of the lever bar and tending to keep the lever
bars shut down upon the fixed bar, in which closed position the end of the
lever bar enters a slot or recess in the fixed bar and effectually protects the
spring from wet. The part of the fixed bar which contains the spring lever
bar inclines upwards slightly towards the "pannell" of the saddle, and stands

page_text: out clear of the side of the saddle so as to allow the stirrup strap to slip off
freely, should the strap be thrown over or across the seat of the saddle.
Should the stirrup strap be dragged back and downwards it will be drawn
along the spring lever bar until it exerts a pressure against the tail-piece,
whereupon the lever bar will be elevated or inclined, and will instantly allow
the strap to slip off the end and over the tail-piece.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Greaves in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
6th November 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
GREAVES, of 11, Portland Street, Poland Street, Sobo, in the County of
Middlesex, Saddle Tree Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
thr said William Greaves, Her special license, that I, the said William
Greaves, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said William Greaves, my executors, administrators. or 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY STIRRUP BARS," upon the condition (amongst
others) that I, the said William Greaves, my executors or administrators, by
an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, or under the hand
and seal of one of them, 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 Greaves, 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:-
.

page_text: My said Invention relates to a peculiar construction and arrangement of
safety stirrup bar for effecting the instantaneous release of the stirrup straps in
cases when the rider is thrown and is hung in the stirrup iron. According to
this Invention the stirrup straps are suspended from the saddle tree by means
of bracket pieces or bars rivetted to the saddle tree, each bar being provided
with a spring lever, over which the strap hangs. These lever bars are made
with a projection or tail piece forming an obtuse angle with the end, where
the lower bars are jointed to the fixed bar, the spring or springs acting upon a
rounded part of the lever bar, and tending to keep the lever bars shut down
upon the fixed bar, in which closed position the end of the lever bar enters a
slot or recess in the fixed bar, and it protects the spring from wet. The part
of the fixed bar which contains the spring lever bar inclines upwards slightly
from the pannel of the saddle, and stands out clear of the side of the
saddle, so as to allow the stirrup strap to slip off freely should the strap be
thrown over or across the seat of the saddle. Should the stirrup strap be
dragged back and downwards it will be drawn along the spring lever bar
until it exerts a pressure against the tail-piece, whereupon the lever bar will
be elevated or inclined and will instantly allow the strap to slip off the end and
over the tail-piece. The flap or support of the bar is, according to this
Invention, so shaped and constructed that it affords great additional strength
to the saddle trec, and thereby prevents the point or bar of the tree itself from
breaking away.
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 I shall
refer to the Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the same
letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in both Figures.
Figure 1 of the Drawings represents a side elevation of my improved safety
stirrup bar, full size; and Figure 2 is a similar view of the safety bar for the
opposite side of the saddle and with the spring lever bar elevated as it would
be when disengaging the stirrup strap; and Figure 3 is a detail of the lever
bar detached.
A is a semicircular bracket-piece or flap used in lieu of the ordinary
straight horizontal bracket; it is rivetted at a, a, to the saddle tree. The
peculiar form of this bracket or flap obviates the necessity for the horizontal
top piece of the old bars, as heretofore made. B is the spring lever bar over
which the stirrup strap hangs (shown also detached at Figure 3). This bar is
jointed or hinged at 6 to the horizontal, or nearly horizontal part C of the
bracket-piece, and is formed with a curved tail-piece D, which rises up at an
obtuse angle from the jointed end of the spring lever bar; E is a blade spring

page_text: or springs contained inside a slot in the part C, and acting upon a curved
portion c, in the joint of the lever bar, so as to hold such lever bar in its place
until it is acted upon by any extraordinary strain of the stirrup strap
against the tail-piece, D, which, should it occur, would cause the spring
lever bar to rise up. and assume the position shown in Figure 2, thereby
releasing the stirrup strap, allowing it to slip over the tail-piece D. In
order to keep the spring lever bar snug in its place when closed down, as
in Figure 1, I cause its free end to enter a vertical slot formed in the
fixed bracket or flap, as shown by dotted lines in Figure 1.
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 the general construction
and arrangement of safety stirrup bars substantially as herein-before described
and illustrated by my Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Greaves, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixth day of November, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-two.