IMPROVEMENTS IN KITCHEN KANGES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Broughton, of No. 8, South Street,
Finsbury Market, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention
of IMPROVEMENTS IN KITCHEN KANGES."
Sealed the 13th April 1869, and dated the 6th November 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Broughton,
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 6th November 1868.
I, WILLIAM BROUGHTON, of No. 8, South Street, Finsbury Market,
in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN KITCHEN RANGES," to be as
follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in kitchen ranges.
Heretofore the several parts of which a kitchen range is composed have
been connected together by screws, the screws being passed through
holes in one part, and screwed into holes bored in lugs or flanges cast
on another part. By this mode of connecting together the several parts
of kitchen range skilled labour is required, as the holes in the lugs or
Price & I

page_text: flanges on the one part have to be drilled and tapped to correspond
exactly with the holes in the other part.
According to my Invention I form each of the lugs or flanges with
a slot, through which the stem of the screw may pass freely, and be
then screwed into a nut which is unable to turn by reason of one of its
sides resting against the side of the plate or part upon which the lugs
or flanges are cast. In some cases in place of employing this arrange-
ment for fixing the oven to the oven front I form a dovetail or other
projection on the bottom of the oven to drop into a corresponding
recess at the bottom of the opening in the "front;" in this case the
top of the oven is formed with a small flange projecting upwards to lap
over the top of the front, and when the top plate or oven hob is fixed in
its place the oven will be held securely; and I sometimes for facility of
fixing make the upper part of the oven front, into which the door fits
in two pieces dividing it at the anglos. In some cases in order to fix
the legs or cheeks to the front plates I form each leg or cheek with a
flange which is passed under overlapping projections on the back of the
front plates; then when the grating forming the fire-bars is fixed in its
place the cheeks will be securely fixed to the front plates
The next part of my Invention relates to a mode of fixing the tap
into the boiler. This is usually effected by forming the tap with a
collar which bears against the front plate or boiler front. The stem of
the tap which is behind this collar is passed through a hole in the front
plate or boiler front, and also through a hole in the front of the boiler;
a nut is then screwed on to its end from the interior of the boiler, so
nipping the front plate and the front of the boiler between the collar on
the tap and the nut. In place of this I form a boss on the front of the
boiler to pass through a hole in the front plate or boiler front. Through
this boss a hole is drilled and tapped to allow the stem of the tap
being screwed into it, or the stem of the tap might be driven into
the hole in the boss in place of being screwed into it as above
described.
'The next part of my Invention relates to the ventilating the ovens of
kitchen ranges, and consists in forming the ventilator or moveable
grating in the oven door in one piece with the bolt used for fastening the
door. The bolt is so formed that when the door is closed it engages with
one end of a lever, the opposite end of which covers over an opening in
the top of the oven. By this arrangement a slight movement of the bolt

page_text: may be used to open both the openings in the door and top of the
oven, and a still further movement of the, bolt will unfasten the
door.
The next part of my Invention consists in forming the oven shelf so
that it may also act as a hanging plate in front of the fire, the shelf
being rested on one of the bars, and having an upright projection on one
edge to go behind the next bar above, which, with two studs or spurs on
the under side of shelf resting against the front of the under bar, retains
the shelf in position. In the front of this shelf I form a hole under
which is a socket to receive an upright rack, the upper end of which has
a hole to hold a fork or other appliance to toast bread or cook meat.
The upright standard or rack is so constructed that it can be raised; or
lowered at pleasure.
Another part of my Invention is applicable to the mounting of range
oven doors, the hinges being formed to project inwards at the pivot or
joint, which renders them capable of being ground or polished at a
reduced cost; and on the frame or oven front I form corresponding
recesses to receive the hanging part of the hinges, and also the pins or
pivots of the joints, these parts being so constructed that the oven door
cannot be removed except when slightly opened.
Another part of my Invention consists of a new mode of fixing the
trivet socket, which is provided with a flange or projecting piece which
falls into a recess provided in the boiler, a screw passing through the
hob securing the same.
The next part of my Invention relates to that class of kitchen range
known as self-acting kitchen ranges, in which the oven is at one side
of the fire, and at the other side of the fire is an L boiler, which also
passes behind a portion of the back of the fire. In this class of range
the oven is commonly heated by a plate called a "conductor" projecting
out from it into the fire, and coming close up to the front of that part
of the boiler which is at the back of the fire, the space behind this plate
forming a channel or flue for a portion of the heat of the fire to rise up
in the usual manner.
According to my Invention I employ a false bottom which may either
slide backwards or forwards on guides or turn on a pivot, so that when
out of use it may be slidden or turned back below the bottom of the
boiler, or when a smaller fire is required the false bottom may be slidden
or turned forward to form a bottom to the fire level with the bottom of

page_text: the conductor, so lessening the depth of the fire and shutting off the
fire from the back of the conductor. The ordinary bottom or fire grate
being liable to wear out sooner than any other part of the range I make
it of a fixed frame with a grating in one or more parts resting on it, so
that they may readily be replaced.
The next part of my Invention relates to a mode of fixing the front
fire bars in the side cheeks. For this purpose the holes in the cheeks
which are to receive the ends of the bars are made to taper slightly;
the smaller ends of the holes being inwards towards the fire-place the
ends of the bars are inserted through these holes, a dovetailed sloping
notch having first been cut into one angle or side of each bar near each
of its ends; a key or wedge is then driven into each hole against the
opposite side or corner of the bar to that in which the notch is formed;
the sloping side of the notch is thus forced against the side of the taper
hole, and the bar is held securely.
Another modification of this part of my Invention consists of having
pockets cast on the cheeks to receive the ends of the front bars, excepting
the top stationary bar, the end of which I fasten in the usual way. The
cheeks are held together by the 'bottom, and for greater security I form
holes in the pockets to receive the ends of the front bars, so that they
may be rivetted in the ordinary way if required. And as the middle
front bars are liable to decay in use I construct the upper portion of
one or both of the cheeks moveable, so that I am able to replace these
bars.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Broughton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 6th May 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I. WILLIAM
BROUGHTON, of No. 8, South Street, Finsbury Market, in the County of
Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of November, in the year of.
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,

page_text: give and grant unto me, the said William Broughton, Her special licence
that I, the said William Broughton, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Broughton, 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 KITCHEN RANGES," проп the condition (amongst others), that I, the
said William Broughton, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals,
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 Broughton, do hereby
declare the nature of his said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in kitchen ranges.
Heretofore the several parts of which a kitchen range is composed have
been connected together by screws, the screws being passed through
holes in one part and screwed into holes bored in lugs or flanges cast on
another part. By this mode of connecting together the several parts of
a kitchen range skilled labour is required as the holes in the lugs or
flanges on the one part have to be drilled and tapped to correspond
exactly with the holes in the other part.
According to my Invention I form each of the lugs or flanges with a
slot through which the stem of the screw may pass freely and be then
screwed into a nut which is unable to turn by reason of one of its sides
resting against the side of the plate or part upon which the lugs or
flanges are cast.
Figure 1 shows a back view, and Figure 2 a side view of part of a
kitchen range constructed as above described.
a is one of the side cheeks, and b a portion of the stove front; on the
side cheek is a slotted lug c, the screw which is to connect together the

page_text: side cheek and front is passed through a hole in the front and through
the slot in the lug, and is screwed into the nut d, which is unable to
turn as one of its sides rests against the side of the side cheek; e is a
second slotted lug on the side check for the purpose of connecting it to
the bottom of the boiler. The other side check of the range would
similarly be formed with slotted lugs and be similarly connected to the
oven front and to the oven. The other parts of a kitchen range may
similarly be connected together, as for example the oven to the oven
front. For fixing the oven to the oven front I in some cases form a pro-
jection on the bottom of the oven to drop into a corresponding recess
at the bottom of the opening in the "front;" in this case the top of the
oven is formed with a small flange projecting upwards to lap over the
top of the front, and when the top plate or oven hob is fixed in its place
the oven will be held securely, and I sometimes to afford facility for
fixing the oven make the upper part of the oven front into which the
door fits in two pieces, dividing it at the angles.
Figures 3 and 4 of the Drawings hereunto annexed shew a back view
and transverse section of a kitchen range in which the oven is connected
to the oven front in the manner above described. In these Figures a is
the oven front; b, the oven with a projection 6' at its bottom to drop
into a recess formed in a small boss a¹ cast on the back of the oven
front; is the hooked flange at the top of the oven to hook over the
top edge of the oven front, as shewn. When the top plate or oven hob
is fixed in its place the oven will be held down and so securely fixed in
its place; this top plate is not shewn in the Drawing. To afford facilities
of fixing I also, as above stated, make the oven front with the part
a³, a, separate from the remaining portion of the plate; this is shown at
Figure 6; the part a² is fixed to the other part of the front by screws
e, e, as shewn passing through the part a' and screwing into holes in
lugs on the other part of the front.
In some cases in order to fix the legs or cheeks to the front plates I
form each leg or cheek with a flange which is passed under overlapping
projections on the back of the front plates, then when the grating
forming the fire-bars is fixed in its place the cheeks will be securely
fixed to the front plates. This improvement is also shown at Figure 3 of
the Drawings. c, c, are the projections at the back of the oven front
and boiler front, and d, d, are the flanges on the side cheeks. When
the bars are fixed in their places the side cheeks are prevented from

page_text: moving towards one another, and when the boiler and oven are con-
nected to the side cheeks and front plates the whole range is securely
fixed together.
The next part of my Invention relates to a mode of fixing the tap into
the boiler;
this is usually effected by forming the tap with a collar which
bears against the front plate or boiler front; the stem of the tap, which
is behind this collar, is passed through a hole in the front plate or boiler
front and also through a hole in the front of the boiler; a nut is then
screwed on to its end from the interior of the boiler, so nipping the
front plate and the front of the boiler between the collar on the tap and
the nut. In place of this I form a boss on the front of the boiler to
pass through a hole in the front plate or boiler front; through this boss
a hole is drilled and tapped to allow the stem of the tap being screwed
into it, or the stem of the tap might be driven into the hole in the boss
in place of being screwed into it as above described.
This improvement is shewn at Figure 5 of the Drawings, which
represents a transverse section of a portion of a boiler and boiler front.
a is the boiler, having a boss a' cast upon it to pass through a hole in
the boiler front b; through this boss a hole is bored to receive the tap c,
which I prefer should be screwed into the hole, but as above stated it
might simply be driven into it.
The next part of my Invention relates to the ventilating the ovens of
kitchen ranges, and consists in forming the ventilator or moveable
grating in the oven door in one piece with the bolt used for fastening
the door. The bolt is so formed that when the door is closed it engages
with one end of a lever, the opposite end of which covers over an open-
ing in the top of the oven.
Figures 6 and 7 shew respectively a front view and transverse section
of the oven of a kitchen range in which the act of drawing back the
sliding door bolt of the oven is caused to act first upon the slide of a
ventilator and also upon the slide of a ventilator in the top of the oven
without unlatching the oven door. a is a plate carrying a latch knob a',
from the back of this plate project two pins which pass through slots in
the oven door to these pins, also passes through holes in the piece b, and
have nuts screwed on to their ends, the forward end of the piece b
forming the bolt of the door; the lower portion of the piece b forms the
sliding plate of the ventilator at the front of the oven, and a projection
on the top of the piece b engages with one end of a lever c, which at
its opposite end is connected to the sliding plate of a ventilator at the

page_text: top of the oven; this ventilator is covered over with a cap d,
as shown, from which is a side opening d¹ to allow steam or air to
escape.
By the above-described arrangement it will be seen that by first draw--
ing back the sliding bolt a the ventilators at the front and top of the
oven will first be opened, and if the bolt be then slightly lifted by
raising the door knob a' the oven door will be unfastened.
The next part of my Invention consists in forming the oven shelf so
that it may also act as a hanging plate in front of the fire, the shelf"
being rested on one of the bars and having an upright projection on one
edge to go behind the next bar above, which with two stubs or spurs on
the under side of shelf resting against the front of the under bar retains
the shelf in position. In the front of this shelf I form a hole under
which is a socket to receive an upright rack, the upper end of which has
a hole to hold a fork or other appliance to toast bread or cook meat.
The upright standard or rack may be so constructed that it can be
raised or lowered at pleasure. Or it may be formed with holes at
different elevations, as shewn in the Drawings. Figures 8 and 9 shew a
front view and side view of an oven shelf so formed. These Figures
shew the shelf hung on to the front bars of a kitchen range.
Another part of my Invention is applicable to the mounting of range
oven doors; the hinges being formed to project inwards at the pivot or
joint, which renders them capable of being ground or polished at a
reduced cost, and on the frame or oven front I form corresponding
recesses to receive the hanging part of the hinges and also the pins or
pivots of the joints; these parts being so constructed that the oven door
cannot be removed except when slightly opened. This improvement is
shown at Figure 6.
The next part of my Invention relates to that class of kitchen range
known as self-acting kitchen ranges, in which the oven is at one side of
the fire, and at the other side of the fire is an L boiler which also passes
behind a portion of the back of the fire. In this class of range the oven
is commonly heated by a plate called a "conductor" projecting out
from it into the fire, and coming close up to the front of that part of
the boiler which is at the back of the fire, the space between this plate
forming a channel or flue for a portion of the heat of the fire to rise up
in the usual manner. According to my Invention I employ a false
bottom which may either slide backwards or forwards on guides or turn

page_text: on' a pivot so that when out of use it may be slidden' or 'turned back
below the bottom of the boiler, or when a smaller fire is required the
false bottom may be slidden or turned forward to form a bottom to 'the
fire level with the bottom of the conductor, so lessening the depth of the
fire; and shutting off the fire from the back of the conductor. The
ordinary bottom or fire grate being liable to wear out sooner than any
other part of the range I make it of a fixed frame with a grating in one
or more parts resting on it so that they may readily be replaced.
Figure 10 shows a plan view of a grate bottom made with a moveable
portion as above described. a, a, is the portion of the bottom to which
the other parts of the stove are connected, and b, b, is the moveable
grating which drops into a recess in the portion a. A front view of
these parts is shown at Figure 11; in this Figure is also shown the false
bottom above mentioned, which I prefer should as there shown slide
backwards and forwards so that it may either be slid back just under the
boiler or be drawn forwards so as to come above the grating a, and the
sloping portion b¹ of the bottom which slopes up to a level just below
the level of the sliding false bottom; a plan view of the false bottom is
shown at Figure 12. When the false bottom is slid forwards it forms as
before stated a bottom for the fire just level with the bottom of the con-
ductor. This conductor is indicated by red lines in the Drawing.
The next part of my Invention relates to a mode of fixing the front
fire-bars in the side cheeks. For this purpose the holes in the checks
which are to receive the ends of the bars are made to taper slightly, the
smaller ends of the holes being inwards towards the fire-place, the ends
of the bars are inserted through these holes, a dovetailed sloping notch
having first been cut into one angle or side of each bar near each of its
ends; a key or wedge is then driven into each hole against the opposite
side or corner of the bar to that in which the notch is formed, the sloping
side of the notch is thus forced against the side of the taper hole and
the bar is held securely.
Another modification of this part of my Invention consists of having
pockets cast on the cheeks to receive the ends of the front bars, excepting
the top stationary bar, the end of which I fasten in the usual way.
The cheeks are held together by the bottom bar, and for greater security
I form holes in the pockets which receive the ends of the front bars so
that they may be rivetted in the ordinary way if required. And as the

page_text: middle front bars are liable to decay in use, I construct the upper
portion of one or both of the cheeks moveable so that I am able to replace
these bars.
Figure 13 shows a set of front fire-bars carried by the two side cheeks as
above described. a, a, are the pockets cast on the cheeks; these pockets
receive the ends of the three lower bars; the ends of the lowest bar have
short studs or pins projecting from them which pass through holes at the
backs of the pockets, and are rivetted over to hold together the side
cheeks at the bottom. The top stationary bar as before stated is fixed
by rivetting to the cheeks in the usual manner.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Broughton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Sixth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine.
WILLIAM BROUGHTON. (L.S.)