IMPROVEMENTS IN FILES OR HOLDERS FOR HOLDING LETTERS AND MUSIC AND FOR OTHER LIKE, PURPOSES
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick Brampton, of Birmingham, in the County.
of Warwick, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
FILES OR HOLDERS FOR HOLDING LETTERS AND MUSIC AND FOR OTHER LIKE,
PURPOSES."
Sealed the 23rd January 1866, and dated the 14th August 1865.
I, FREDERICK BRAMPTON, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-'
PROVEMENTS IN FILES OR HOLDERS FOR HOLDING LETTERS AND MUSIC AND FOR OTHER
LIKE PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in files or
holders for. holding letters, music, and papers, and for other like purposes,
by which improvements the letters or papers may be fixed in the file or holder,
with great rapidity and held therein securely.
I will describe, my Invention as applied to a letter file. I make a case or
cover similar to the cover or binding of a book, and insert in the back of the
case four or other number of springs made from sheet steel, the said springs

page_text: being enclosed in the material of which the back is made, and crossing the
said back of the cover in a manner similar to that in which the bands used in
bookbinding cross the back of the book. The said springs are nearly flat,
but are turned inwards at their ends at an angle somewhat more than a right
angle. A metallic bar is fixed along one side of the back by being screwed
or otherwise attached to the ends of the springs at that side, and the said bar
is provided with a series of pointed pins, which extend across the inside of the
back, their ends engaging under the opposite turned-in ends of the springs.
In order to file letters or papers the side of the cover to which the bar is
attached is held down by one hand, while, the other side is lifted so as to
partially unbend the springs in the back and allow the points of the pins to
pass from under the turned-in ends of the said springs. Letters or papers
may now be put on the pins. In order to press down the letters or papers a
metallic tube is connected to the bar carrying the pins by means of an elastic
cord passing through it, the ends of the said cord being attached to the ends
of the bar. The filed letters or papers are held and pressed between the bar
and the said tube, as well as being fixed on the pins. To the said tube a flap
of strong card is fixed in the position of the fly leaf of a book. By taking
hold of the said flap the tube may be raised from off the letters or papers and
passed to the other side of the pins, which requires to be done after the lifting
of the cover and the liberation of the points of the pins. After the placing of
the letters upon the pins the flap is lifted and the tube. brought over the pins
so that the said tube and flap may press upon the letters. By lifting the
-cover so as partially to unbend the springs the pins may be engaged under-
neath the turned-in edge of the back, and the filing of the
is complete.
letters or papers
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Frederick Brampton in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
10th February 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FREDERICK
BRAMPTON, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of August, 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

page_text: me, the said Frederick Brampton, Her special licence that I, the said
Frederick Brampton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Frederick Brampton, 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 FILES OR HOLDERS FOR HOLDING LETTERS AND MUSIC AND
FOR OTHER LIKE PURPOSES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Frederick Brampton, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should pȧr-.
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.
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent. :
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Frederick Brampton, do hereby declare
the nature of the 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:-
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in files
or holders for holding letters, music, and papers, and for other like purposes,
by which improvements the letters or papers may be fixed in the file or holder
with great rapidity, and held securely therein.
I will describe my Invention as applied to a letter file: I make a case
or cover similar to the cover or binding of a book, and insert in the back of
the case four or other number of springs made from sheet steel, the said springs
being enclosed in the material of which the back is made, and crossing the
said back of the cover in a manner similar to that in which the bands used
in bookbinding cross the back of the book. The said springs are nearly flat,
but are turned inwards at their ends at an angle somewhat more than a right
angle. A metallic bar is fixed along one side of the back by being screwed
or otherwise attached to the ends of the springs at that side or to the inner
edge of one side of the cover, and the said bar is provided with a series of
pointed pins, which extend across the inside of the back, their ends engaging
under the opposite turned-in ends of the springs. In order to file letters or
papers the side of the cover to which the bar is attached is held down by one
hand, while the other side is lifted so as to partially unbend the springs in the
back and allow the points of the pins. to pass from under the, turped-in
ends of the said springs. Letters or papers may now be put on the pins.

page_text: In order to press down the letters or papers a metallic tube is connected to
the bar carrying the pins by means of an elastic cord passing through it, the
ends of the said cord being attached to the ends of the bar. The filed letters
or papers are held and pressed between the bar and the said tube, as well as
being fixed on the pins. To the said tube a flap of strong eard is fixed in
the position of the fly leaf of a book. By taking hold of, the said flap the
'tube may be raised from off the letters or papers and passed to the other side
of the pins, which requires to be done after the lifting of the cover and the
liberation of the points of the pins. After the placing of the letters upon
the pins the flap is lifted and the tube brought over the pins so that the
'said tube and flap may press upon the letters. By lifting the cover so as
partially to unbend the springs the pins may be engaged underneath the
turned-in edge of the back, and the filing of the letters or papers is complete.
Having explained the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to describe
with reference to the accompanying Drawing the manner in which the same is
'to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in elevation, and Figure 2 in cross section, a file
or holder for letters, papers, music, and for other like purposes constructed
'according to my Invention, the parts being in the positions which they
respectively occupy when the letters or papers have been fixed in the file or
holder; Figure 3 represents the back of the file or holder; Figure 4 repre-
sents in elevation, and Figure 5 in edge view, the file or holder in position
for receiving the letters or papers; and Figure 6 is an end elevation showing
the letters or papers fixed in the file or holder. Figures 7, 8, 9, and. 10
represent separate parts of my Invention on a larger scale, as herein-after
explained. The same letters -indicate the same parts in each Figure of the
Drawing.
being. inserted
a, a, is the case or cover of the file or holder, similar to the cover or
binding of a book. In the back a³ of the said case a, a³, I insert four or
other number of steel springs marked b, the said springs
or enclosed in the material of which the said back is made. The shape of
these springs 6 is best seen in Figure 10, which represents one of the said
springs on a larger scale, and the manner in which the said springs cross the
back as of the case or cover is indicated in dotted lines in Figure 3.
metallic bar c is fixed along the inner edge of the side a of the case, the said
bar being provided with a series of pointed pins d. The bar c and pins d are
represented separately on a larger scale in Figure 7. The 'said bar c is
attached to the inner edge of the cover a by a strip of cloth or fabric passed
round it, and secured to the cover, and the pins d on the said bar. are of a
A

page_text: length suitable to extend across the inside of the back a. The bar c is
capable of turning on the edge of the part a, to which it is connected, so as to
enable the pointed pins d to engage under the turned-in ends of the springs d
at one side of the back, as represented in Figures 1 and 2, or be turned
nearly at right angles to the said back, as represented in Figures 4 and 5.
e is a metallic tube connected to the ends of the bar c by a cord f passing
through the tube, and fastened within the tube to the ends of a coiled
spring 9. The tube e, spring 9, and cord fare represented separately on a
larger scale in Figures 8 and 9. The ends of the tube e are closed, and the
expansion of the spring g limited by small collars, one of which is represented
in section in Figure 8, and marked e'. To the said tube e a flap of strong
card is fixed in the position of a fly leaf of a book. By means of the elastic
connection of the tube e to the bar c the said tube and its flap are made to
press forcibly upon and hold down the papers or letters in the file or holder,
as herein-after explained.
In order to file letters or papers when the parts of the file or holder are in
the positions represented in Figures 1 and 2, the side a of the cover to which
the bar c is attached is held down in one hand, while the other side, a³, is
lifted vertically by the other hand, so as to partially unbend the springs 6 in
the back as, and allow the points of the pins d to pass from under the
turned-in ends of the said springs into the position represented in Figures 4
and 5. After having raised the tube e by its flap over the pointed pins d to
the opposite side of the said pins (see Figures 4 and 5), the file is ready to
receive the letters or papers. The letters or papers having been placed upon
the pointed pins d, the tube e and its flap e² are passed over the pins d from
the side represented in Figures 4 and 5 to that represented in Figures 1 and 2,
so that the said tube and flap may press upon letters or papers and force them
to the base of the pins d. By now lifting the side as of the cover, so as
partially to unbend the springs b, the pins d may be engaged underneath the
turned-in edge of the said springs in the back of the cover, and the filing of
the letters or papers is complete, the said letters or papers being held and
pressed between the bar c and tube e, as well as being fixed on the pins d.
The letters or papers passed on to the pins d, and pressed between the bar c
and tube e, are represented in Figure 6.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit
myself to the precise details herein described and illustrated, as the same may
be varied without departing from the nature of my Invention; but I claim as
my Invention, the improvements in files or holders for holding letters and

page_text: music; and for other like purposes, herein-before described and illustråted in
the accompanying Drawing, that is to say, the construction and arrangement
or combination of the parts of the said files or holders substantially in the
manner described and illustrated..
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick Brampton, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Eighth day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
FREDERICK BRAMPTON. (LS.)