IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Lascelles, of Bunhill Row, in
the County of Middlesex, Builder, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS."
Sealed the 30th November 1875, and dated the 11th June 1875.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry
Lascelles at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 11th June 1875.
I, WILLIAM HENRY LASCELLES, of Bunbill Row, in the County
of Middlesex, Builder, do hereby declare the nature of the said In-
vention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS," to be as
follows:-
The object of my Invention is more particularly to reduce the cost of
small houses or cottages, and to facilitate their construction in such a
manner that they may be erected for the most part with unskilled labour
and in a short space of time.

page_text: In carrying out my Invention I first construct the framing of the
building of wood of light scantling, the uprights being about 3 feet
apart. The spaces are covered or filled in with slabs of concrete from
an inch to an inch and a-half thick, and about 3 fect by 2 feet in super-
ficial arca, or of any other convenient size. These slabs are made of
crushed coke or cinders and Portland cement, and are cast in moulds,
the face of which is prepared with any suitable prints to produce an
ornamental surface on the slabs, the surfaces of which moreover may be
made of any suitable color by facing the mould with a thin layer of
fine concrete of the desired color. The concreto slabs having been
properly prepared and dried they are to be secured in a vertical position
against the wooden uprights of the framing by means of ordinary wood
The ends of the slabs are made to abut against each other with
a thin layer of cement between them, but the horizontal joints aro
rebated so as to form with the cement between them close joints. The
walls of the building are thus formed of these thin concrete slabs placed
vertically on edge one above another to the proper height. The slabs
may be placed either inside or outside the wooden framing, or some of
them inside and some of them outside, so as to vary the external
appearance of the building. The roof is also formed of these slabs, the
outer face thereof having been moulded and colored to imitate the
screws.
21

page_text: When hollow walls are made by attaching the slabs to the inside as
well as to the outside of the wooden framing the house will be much
warmer in winter and cooler in summer than when only single slabs are
used, and the hollow spaces between the wooden uprights may be
5 utilized as ventilating shafts for drawing off vitiated air from the rooms
and admitting fresh air through suitable apertures.
BUZA
Patent Office on the 11th December 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HENRY LASCELLES, of Bunhill Row, in the County of Middlesex,
Builder, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the
thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and suc-
cessors, give and grant unto me, the said William Henry Lascelles,
Her special licence that I, the said William Henry Lascelles, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Henry Lascelles, 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 King-
dom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of
Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Henry
Lascelles, my executors or administrators, by an instrument 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
Potent

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Henry Lascelles, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the
Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked
thereon (that is to say) :-
The object of my Invention of "improvements in the construction of
buildings" is more particularly to reduce the cost of small houses or
cottages, and to facilitate their construction in such a manner that they
may be erected for the most part by unskilled labour and in a short
space of time.
In carrying out my Invention I first construct the framing of the
building, by preference of wood of light scantling, and I place the
uprights of the framing about three feet apart. The spaces between
the uprights are covered or filled in with slabs of concrete from an inch
to an inch and a half thick, and about three feet by two feet in
dimensions, or of any other convenient size.
In Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying Drawings I have shown an
elevation and plan view of a portion of a wall constructed according to
my Invention. A is the plate, which rests on the concrete foundation;
and B, B, are the uprights, which are properly secured to the plate A;
and C, C, are the concrete slabs. These slabs are made by preference of
crushed coke or cinders mixed with Portland cement, but I also employ
lime and burnt clay, ballast, or chalk, or any other material, which
may be most readily obtained and converted into a suitable concrete.
The slabs are cast in moulds, the faces of which are prepared with any
suitable prints to produce an ornamental surface on the slabs.
For the purpose of increasing the strength and rigidity of the concrete
slabs I embed in the concrete short lengths of hoop or bar iron or wire
or wire network. In most cases it will be sufficient to embed two lengths
of strong hoop or bar iron extending diagonally from corner to corner of
the slabs and crossing in the middle, but for floor slabs it may be
desirable to add a broad piece of wire netting. The surfaces of the
slabs may be made of any suitable colour by facing the mould with a
thin layer of fine concrete of the desired colour and rigidity. The
concrete slabs having been properly prepared and dried they are to be
placed in a vertical position against the uprights B of the framing, to

page_text: which they are to be secured by means of screws a or in any other con-
venient manner. The ends of the slabs are made to abut against cachi
other, but a thin layer of cement is placed between them. The hori
zontal joints are rebated, so as to form with the cement between them
close air-tight joints. The walls of the building are thus formed of
these thin concrete slabs placed vertically on edge one above another to
the proper height. The slabs may be placed either inside or outside the
framing, or some of them may be placed inside and some of them
outside, so as to vary the external appearance of the building. The roof
I also form of these slabs, the outer face thereof being moulded and
colored to imitate the appearance of tiling, as shewn in Figures 3 and 4
of the Drawings (Fig. 3 being a plan view of a part of the roof, and
Fig. 4 a section of the same), in which E are the rafters, and F the
slabs, which are laid on the rafters and screwed down as before
described, or are otherwise secured thereon.
In order to make the roof watertight I have devised several methods
of covering or closing the joints between the roof slabs, and three of
these methods are shown in Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of the Drawings.
In Figures 3, 4, and 5 the joint is covered with plain tiles b, which
are cemented down to the slabs, and this is the method I prefer to
employ.
In Fig. 6 the slabs are laid on the rafters, leaving a small space
between the edges of the slabs. The slabs are then screwed down or
otherwise secured, and the spaces are filled with caulking.
In the third method (shown at Fig. 7) I place fillets c along the outer
edges of the rafters E, and between the slabs F and the rafters E. In
this case the edges of the slabs abut, and tho slabs are secured to the
rafters by screws which pass through the fillets c, or are otherwise
secured to the rafters; thus the rafters will be made to form gutters to
receive and conduct away any water that may enter between the
joints of the slabs.
The gutters or valleys between two gables may be made by filling in
the joint with concrete, as shown at d, Fig. 8, so as to keep the gutter
or valley watertight, but care must be taken to give a fall from the
centre of this filling to the outer ends in order to allow the rain to
run off.

page_text: I also propose to use these slabs in place of boards for the floors, and
I construct the floor in such a manner that the necessity of a lath and
plaster ceiling beneath may be dispensed with. The joists G (see
Figures 9 and 10) consist of two battens nailed together, and these
joists I place three feet apart from centre to centre. The two sides and
under side of these battens I cover with seven-inch flooring boards e.
Notches(see Figures 9 and 11) are cut in the side boards at a distance
of two feet from centre to centre to receive and support cross pieces H,
which are formed of half battens. The slabs O are thon secured to tho
battens by screws or otherwise, and the floor thus formed may be 1
covered with a thin layer of what is well known in some parts of
England as lime ash concrete, by which means a strong, solid, and
warm floor is obtained. The joists G and cross pieces H may be stained
and varnished, and will have the appearance of the old fashioned oak
floors.
The chimneys and flues may be made of concrete slabs set on end and
nailed or screwed together. Kitchen coppers may also be set in the
same kind of slabs.
For houses of a better sort, and where the cost is not so great an
object, as in building cottages or artizans' dwellings, the house or a part
thereof may be lined internally with the concrete slabs, which are
secured to the inside of the uprights in the same manner as the outside
ones, and if desired the inside slabs may be plastered, cemented, or
prepared to receive paperhangings.
Water tanks or cisterns for the use of the inhabitants of the dwellings
may be made of the same or analogous slabs nailed or screwed together,
the joints being made tight by means of cement or otherwise.
When hollow walls are made by attaching the slabs to the inside as
well as the outside of the wooden framing the house will be much
warmer in winter and cooler in summer than when only single slabs are a
used, and the hollow spaces between the wooden uprights may be utilized
as ventilating shafts for drawing off vitiated air from the room and
admitting fresh air through suitable apertures.
I would here remark that the framing of the building may if desired
be made of iron, or the uprights may be made of concrete and braced a
together at intervals by tie rods or hoop iron.

page_text: Having thus described my Invention of "Improvements in the Con-
struction of Buildings," and having explained the manner of carrying
the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the above in
part recited Letters Patent I claim constructing buildings of slabs of
concrete, which are to be secured in any convenient manner to a framing
of wood or other material, as herein shewn and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Lascelles, have
hereunto set my hand and scal, the Tenth day of December,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy
five.