IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF TRAMWAYS
Year: 1883

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Yate Johnson of 47 Lincolns Inn Fields in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE PERMANENT WAY OF TRAMWAYS" communicated to him from Henri
Louis Geveke a person resident at Amsterdam in the Kingdom of Holland,
Engineer,
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Yate Johnson at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 10th September 1883.
B
JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincolns Inn Fields in the County of Middlesex
Gentleman "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF TRAMWAYS"
communication from Henri Louis Geveke a person resident at Amsterdam in the
Kingdom of Holland Engineer
The improved permanent way for tramways forming the object of the present
invention is extremely durable and inexpensive and is capable of being laid with
great rapidity and facility.
The rails can be bent to the required curvature on the spot without other
apparatus than an anvil and hammer.
The joints made according to this invention are rigid and durable and admit of
worn out rails being removed and replaced by new ones without interfering
materially with the traffic
The improved tramway rails employed in carrying out this Invention are
preferably made of Bessemer Cast Steel and flat on the underside. The upper
side presents a suitable groove or channel for the reception of the flanges of the
wheels of the Vehicles used upon the line.
On curves of a small radius the rails on the inner side are of the same form
generally as those on the straight parts of the line but are provided with an edge
or guard rail somewhat higher than the tread rail and projecting say about half an
inch above the latter. The rails on the outer side are preferably flat or without a
groove and present a wide or extended bearing surface. Rails made according to
either of these patterns may be employed without causing any inconvenience to
pedestrians or to ordinary vehicles nor do they interfere with the usual paving

page_text: operations A horizontal ridge or projection is formed on each side of the rails and
is slightly hollowed or recessed on its upper surface. At intervals of say about
thirty inches from centre to centre, these ridges are discontinued for a short
distance so as to present notches about one and a half inches wide, These notches
are so arranged that a half notch is formed at the end of the rail and consequently
the adjacent ends of two rails present a full sized notch when joined together
These rails are laid upon longitudinal trough shaped sleepers of rolled iron or steel
presenting a flat top and wide base affording a firm support by taking a large
bearing on the ballast.
.
At suitable intervals in the sides of these sleepers are formed elongated holes
and directly over each of these holes is formed a round hole. These holes serve
respectively for the reception of cramps or dogs and bolts employed to secure the
rail to the sleeper as hereinafter described. Each sleeper is provided with a certain
number of extra holes to be used in case the rails are shortened.
The sleepers are tied or connected together transversely at intervals of from
about five to seven feet by means of flat bars provided near their extremities with
notches for the reception of the inclined sides of the longitudinal trough shaped
sleepers. The notches engaging with the outer sides or webs of these sleepers are
of a form corresponding to the section of the said webs but the notches engaging
with the inner sides or webs of the sleepers are made wider than the others in
-order to facilitate the placing of the sleepers in position. Flat plates bolted to
each side of the cross bars and provided with notches fitting exactly on to the
inner webs or sides of the sleepers serve to lock or retain the sleepers in the proper
position.
The rails are secured to the trough shaped sleepers by means of iron or steel
cramps. The upper extremity of these cramps is T shaped presenting on each
side a lateral projection or claw having a rounded under surface and the lower
extremity is bent so as to form a species of hook making an obtuse angle with the
inner side.
The vertical parts or shank of the cramps engage with the notches in the ridges
or projections hereinbefore described on the sides of the rails and the rounded
under surface of the lateral projections or claws on the upper extremities of these
cramps engage with the depression or recess hereinbefore described in the upper
surface of the said projection on the side of the rail. The hook or claw at the
lower extremity of the cramp engages with the elongated holes in the longitudinal
sleeper. These cramps being applied to each side of the rail are retained in
opposite pairs by bolts passed through the sleeper. The act of tightening the nuts
on these bolts has the effect of causing the hooks at the lower extremities of the
cramps to engage more deeply with the rectangular holes in the sides of the
sleeper and in consequence of the inclined surface on the upper sides of the said
hooks thus presses the rail with great force against the sleeper and renders any
slipping of the former upon the latter impossible.
On sharp curves the sleepers are preferably made in short lengths which need
not be curved. The raised edge on the guard rails employed on curves serves to
prevent derailments of the vehicles and the widened bearing surface on the tread
rails affords the needful enlargement of the base at these parts.
The types of rails hereinbefore described may be bent by simply hammering
them upon an anvil. This operation requires but little practice on the part of the
workmen to enable it to be performed on the spot with great rapidity and precision.
The facility thus afforded for adjusting the curve of the rails without taking them
to the shop is attended with great advantages in practice.
The improved method of joining the ends of rails for tramways worked by
Horse or other power consists in arranging the rails in such a manner as to break
joint with the sleepers and securing the ends of the rails by means of three pairs
of cramps arranged generally as herein before described but preferably at a shorter
distance apart The middle pair of Cramps engages simultaneously with the two
adjacent extremities of the rails and ensures uniformity of the bearing surface or

page_text: tread at the ends of the said rails. Joints thus formed are as inflexible as any
other portion of the line.
Points and crossings are constructed on similar principles to the other parts of the
line and in order to form a durable joint between the rails and the intermediate
parts at crossings or switches the sleepers supporting these parts are caused to
extend a certain distance under the adjacent rails and are clamped thereto as
herein before described-The longitudinal sleepers may be attached before hand to
the transverse connections at the shop forming frames which can be readily
transported to the line in progress
The sides of the rails and sleepers are of a form that admits of the employment
of any description of paving and enables the paving setts to be laid snugly against
the sides of the rails
In order to effect repairs or remove worn out rails it is simply necessary to
remove a small portion of the pavement at the points where the bolts and cramps
are placed

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said James Yate Johnson in the Patent Office on the 10th March
1884.
&
JAMES YATE JOHNSON of 47 Lincolns Inn Fields in the County of Middlesex
Gentleman "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PERMANENT WAY OF TRAMWAYS"
communication, to me from Henri Louis Geveke a person resident at Amsterdam
in the Kingdom of Holland Engineer
The improved permanent way for tramways forming the object of the present
Invention is extremely durable and inexpensive and is capable of being laid with
great rapidity and facility. The rails can be bent to the required curvature on the
spot without other apparatus than an Anvil and hammer. The joints made
according to this Invention are rigid and durable and admit of worn out rails
being readily removed and replaced by new ones without interfering materially
with the traffic.
This improved permanent way is constructed with grooved rails secured by
means of cramps or dogs and bolts to trough shaped longitudinal sleepers of
trapezoidal section maintained at the proper distance apart by means of transverse
tie bars or connections as hereinafter described.
And in order that the 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 two sheets of drawings the same letters of
reference indicating corresponding parts in all the figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings is a transverse section and figure 2 is a
longitudinal elevation of a portion of a rail with its supports constructed according
to this Invention.
Figure 3 drawn to a smaller scale is a transverse section of a tramway line
constructed with the improved rails and supports and figures 4 and 5 drawn to a
still smaller scale represent respectively a side elevation and a plan of part of the
line.
The tramway rails marked R in the drawing are preferably made of Bessemer
Cast steel and are flat on the underside. The upper side presents a suitable groove
or channel for the reception of the flanges of the wheels of the Vebicles used upon
the line. The tread is preferably about one and three quarter inches wide and the
groove about one and a quarter inches wide and about one inch deep but I do not
limit myself to these dininsions-On curves of small radius say less than about
sixty yards, the rails on the inner side of the curve are of the same form generally.
as those on the straight parts of the line. but are provided with an edge or guard
rail somewhat higher than the tread rail projecting say about half an inch above
the latter as indicated in dotted lines at R¹ figure 1. The rails on the outer side of
the curve are preferably flat or without a groove and present a wide or extended
bearing surface say for example about four and a half inches in width by about one
inch in thickness A curved line of rails provided with a grooved rail on the inner
side and a flat rail on the outer side of the curve is represented on the left hand
side of Figure 5.
Rails made according to either of these patterns may be employed without
causing the slightest inconvenience to pedestrians or to ordinary vehicles nor do
they interfere with the usual paving operations. Horizontal ridges or projections
hollowed or recessed on the upper side as indicated in figure 1 and preferably
about three eighths of an inch both in beight and in width are formed upon the
sides of the rails R preferably in the process of rolling. At intervals of say for

page_text: example about thirty inches these ridges are discontinued for a short distance by
chipping or cutting away the metal or otherwise so as to present notches which
may be about one and a half inches wide. Where the ends of the rails meet a full
notch is formed by a half notch at the extremity of each rail. The normal length
of the rail is assumed to be twenty nine feet six inches but it is evident that this
as well as the other measurements given by way of example in the present
Specification may be modified according to circumstances without affecting the
Spirit of the Invention.
The rails are laid upon longitudinal trough shaped sleepers L preferably of rolled
iron or steel presenting a flat top and a wide base affording a firm support by
taking a large bearing on the ballast. At suitable intervals corresponding to the
notches in the ridges or projections hereinbefore described on the sides of the rails
there are formed in the sides of these sleepers slots n and directly over each of these
slots is formed a hole m. These slots and holes serve respectively for the reception
of cramps or dogs A and bolts o employed to secure the rail R to the sleeper Las
hereinafter described. Each sleeper is provided with extra slots and holes as
shewn in figure 4 to be used in case the rails are shortened or shifted.
The normal length of the sleepers in the present example is, assumed by way of
example to be fourteen feet ten inches.
.
The opposite sleepers are tied or connected together transversely at intervals of
from say for example about five to seven feet by means of flat bars or plates E
provided near their extremities with notches for the reception of the inclined
sides of the longitudinal 'sleepers L. The notches (figure 3) engage with the
outer sides or webs of these sleepers and are of a form corresponding to the section
of the said webs but the notches engaging with the inner sides or webs of the
sleepers are made wider than the others as indicated by dotted lines in figures 1
aud 3 in order to facilitate the placing of the sleepers in position. Short plates p
bolted to each side of the bars E and provided with notches fitting exactly onto
the inner webs or sides of the sleepers L serve to lock or retain the sleepers in the
proper position on the said cross bars.
The said bars are preferably arranged at intervals of from about seven feet four
inches for a straight line to about five feet for curves.
The rails are secured to the sleepers by means of the cramps A hereinbefore
referred to which are an important element in the construction. These cramps are
preferably made of tough iron or steel and their upper extremities are T shaped
(figure 2) presenting on each side a lateral projection or claw a having a rounded
under surface and the lower extremity is bent so as to form a species of hook b
making an obtuse angle with the inner side of the shank.
The vertical part or shank of the cramp bears for a distance of preferably about
one and a quarter inches against the sides of the rail and sleeper being fitted into
the notches in the ridges or projections herein before described on the side of
the rails and the rounded under surface of the lateral projections or claws a on the
cramps A engages with the depression or recess hereinbefore described in the upper
surface of the said ridges or projections.
The cramps A being pressed equally against the longitudinal sleeper L and
against the rail R render it impossible for the latter to become laterally displaced.
The hooks or claws b at the lower extremities of the Cramps engage with the
rectangular elongated holes n in the longitudinal sleepers and the cramps being
applied to each side of the rail are retained in opposite pairs by the bolts o passed
through the sleeper (figure 1). The tightening of the nuts on these bolts has the
effect of causing the hooks b at the lower extremities of the cramps to engage more
deeply with the holes n and, in consequence of the inclined surface on the upper
sides of the said hooks the rail and sleeper are drawn together with great force and
any slipping or creeping of the former upon the latter is impossible On curves of*
not less than about sixty five feet radius the sleepers are preferably made in short
lengths which need not be curved being so laid as to form a series of angles with
one another.
J
نم

page_text: It might be supposed that such short lengths would be liable to disturb the,
ballast and produce a sinking of the line but experience has shewn that this is not
the case.
In the case of curves of from about thirty to two hundred feet radius it is
preferred to employ the guard and flat rails herein before described. The raised
edge R¹ on the guard rails employed on curves serves to prevent the Vehicles from
leaving the rails and the widened bearing surface on the flat or tread rails on the
opposite side affords the needful width of bearing surface for the wheels, at these
parts.
The types of rails hereinbefore described may be bent by simply hammering
them upon an anvil preferably by striking the under side. This operation may be
performed on the spot where the rails are being laid.
The facility thus afforded for adjusting the curve of the rails without taking
them to the shop is attended with great advantages in practice.
The herein before described system of permanent way presents the important
advantage that the rails can be correctly bent to the required curvature without
special appliances involving the taking of measurements before hand and at a distance.
These measurements cannot be made in practice in the case of curves on inclines
and are very difficult to take correctly under any conditions as is proved by the
fact that rails which have been curved beforehand very frequently require to have
their curvature readjusted on the line. Such readjustment can only be effected by
diverting the line to one side or to the other in order to accommodate the curves but
a line which has been thus treated will get out of order after being worked for a
short time.
The rails are preferably arranged in such a manner as to break joint with the
sleepers and the ends of the rails are secured by means of three pairs of cramps
arranged generally as hereinbefore described but preferably at a shorter distance
apart. The middle pair of cramps engages simultaneously with the two adjacent
extremities of the rails and when the bolt is screwed up press equally upon both
rails and hold them firmly down on the flat surface of the sleeper. The rails being
all of the same form in section and the ends properly squared the bearing surfaces
or treads at the ends of the said rails form a practically continuous and inflexible
line and the wheels are consequently enabled to pass from one rail to another
without jolting.
Points and crossings are constructed on similar principles to the other parts of
the line being supported in trough shaped supports and secured in position by
clamps as hereinbefore described with reference to the rails. In order to form a
durable joint between the rails and the intermediate parts at crossings or switches
the sleepers supporting these parts are caused to extend some distance under the
adjacent rails and three pairs of clamps are used as herein before described. The
longitudinal sleepers may be attached either beforehand or at the place where they
are laid to the transverse connections.
The ballast should be packed well under the sleepers to afford a firm bearing.
The sides of the rails and sleepers are of a form that admits of the employment
of any description of paving and enables the paving setts to be laid snugly against
the sides of the rails.
In order to effect repairs or remove worn out rails it is simply necessary to
remove a small portion of the paving at the points where the bolts and cramps are
placed. The same bolts and cramps may be used to secure the new rail.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the 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 hereinbefore in part
recited Letters Patent is :-
First. The general arrangement and combination of parts constituting the
permanent way of tramways substantially as herein before described and illustrated
in the accompanying drawings,

page_text: Second. In the construction of the permanent way of tramways making the
curved portions of the line of rails having a guard rib projecting above the tread on
the inner side of the curve and of flat rails without grooves on the outer side of
the curve substantially as herein before described.
Third. In the permanent way of Tramways the employment of longitudinal
sleepers formed as described and tied together transversely by means of tie bars or
plates provided with notches for the reception of the sides of the sleepers and
locking plates for retaining the said sleepers in position substantially as herein before
described
Fourth. In the permanent way of Tramways the employment of rails with side
ribs or projections with which engage cramps secured to the sleepers substantially
as hereinbefore described.
Fifth. In the construction of the permanent way of Tramways the employment
of cramps for fastening the rails to the sleepers the said cramps consisting of upper
portions which engage with the rail and lower wedge shaped or inclined portions
which engage with the sleeper the said cramps being secured substantially as and
for the purpose herein before described.
In witness whereof I the said James Yate Johnson have to this my Specification
set my hand and seal this tenth day of March One thousand eight hundred and
eighty four.