IMPROVEMENTS IN LADIES' DRESS HOLDERS OR DRESS SUSPENDERS, AND IN STOCKING SUSPENDERS
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Charles Alldridge, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN LADIES'
DRESS HOLDERS OR DRESS SUSPENDERS, AND IN STOCKING SUSPENDERS."
Sealed the 6th September 1878, and dated the 26th June 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Charles Alldridge
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 26th June 1878.
WILLIAM CHARLES ALLDRIDGE, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Manufacturer. “IMPROVEMENTS IN LADIES' DRESS HOLDERS OR DRESS SUSPENDERS,
AND IN STOCKING SUSPENDERS."
My Invention consists of the improvements, herein-after described, in ladies'
dress holders or dress suspenders, which improvements may also be applied with
slight modification to stocking suspenders.
In making a lady's dress holder or dress suspender, according to my Invention,
I form a frame from wire or sheet metal or from a non-metallic substance, the said
frame being triangular. Two of the sides of the triangle are of equal length, and
make a small angle with each other. The third side is much shorter than the other
two, and has a series of three or other number of undulations or loops formed in it.
The holder is secured to the dress by a cord connected to one of these undulations
or loops, the two longer sides of the triangular frame depending from the short side
attached to the dress. The two depending and longer sides of the frame are by
preference slightly carved, their opposed parts being convex. By this curvature
the angle which the sides make with one another becomes less and less as the
opposed sides approach cach other, and at the point where the sides join they are
nearly parallel. The said sides may, however, be made without the curvature
described.
In using the dress holder it is only necessary to raise that portion of the dress
to be held and to pass part of it through the frame. By now depressing that part
which has been passed through the frame, it is drawn into the wedge-like space

page_text: between the two longer sides of the frame and securely fixed there. Any
pressure pulling the dress downwards tends to tighten the grip of the holder on
the dress.
In order to liberate the dress that portion which has been passed through the
frame is raised from the narrow part of the holder in which it had been gripped
into the upper and wider part. The said portion of the dress no longer held by
the holder can be passed back out of the holder, and falls into position by its own
weight.
In applying my improvements to stocking suspenders i make the frame in the
way already described with respect to a dress holder, excepting that I make it
much smaller and employ, by preference, but one undulation or loop in the short
side of the frame, for the purpose of connecting it by a cord or otherwise to the
article of dress.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Charles Alldridge in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
19th December 1878.
WILLIAM CHARLES ALLDRIDGE, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN LADIES' DRESS HOLDERS OR DRESS SUSPENDERS,
AND IN STOCKING SUSPENDERS.'
"
My Invention consists of the improvements, herein-after described, in ladies'
dress holders or dress suspenders, which improvements may also be applied with
slight modification to stocking suspenders.
In making a lady's dress holder or dress suspender, according to my Invention,
I form a frame from wire or sheet metal or from a non-metallic substance, the said
frame being triangular. Two of the sides of the triangle are of equal length, and
make a small angle with each other. The third side is much shorter than the other
two, and has a series of three or other number of undulations or loops formed in it.
The holder is secured to the waist of the wearer by a cord connected to one of
these undulations or loops, the two longer sides of the triangular frame depending
from the short side attached to the dress by the cord described. The two depending
and longer sides of the frame are by preference slightly curved, their opposed parts
being convex. By this curvature the angle which the sides make with one another
becomes less and less as the opposed sides approach each other, and at the point
where the sides join they are nearly parallel. The said sides may, however, be
made without the curvature described.
In using the dress holder it is only necessary to raise that portion of the dress
to be held and to pass part of it through the frame. By now depressing that part
which has been passed through the frame, it is drawn into the wedge-like space
between the two longer sides of the frame and securely fixed thore. Any pressure
pulling the dress downwards tends to tighten the grip of the holder on the dress.
יד'

page_text: In order to liberate the dress that portion which has been passed through the
frame is raised from the narrow part of the holder in which it had been gripped
into the upper and wider part. The said portion of the dress, no longer held by
the holder, can be passed back out of the holler and falls into position by its own
weight.
I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawing,
the manner in which my Invention is to be performed.
Figure represents in front elevation, side clevation, and vertical and horizontal
sections a lady's dress holder or dress suspender, constructed according to my
Invention, made from sheet metal by a cutting out and stamping process; Figure 2
represents in front elevation, side elevation, and vertical section a dress holder of
the same kind made from wire by a bending process; and Figure 3 represents in
front elevation a dress holder of the same kind, in which the body is made from
wire and the head from sheet metal.
The said dress holder or dress suspender (Figures 1 and 2) consists of a triangular
frame marked a, b, c, the sides a, b, of the triangle being equal in length and
inclined to one another at the angle represented; but the top or short side c of the
frame is much shorter than the other sides a, b, and is furnished with three undu-
lations or loops d, d, d, as represented. To one of the loops da cord is connected
by which the dress holder is attached to the waist of the wearer, the two longer
sides a, b, of the triangular frame depending from the said short side c.
It will be seen that the depending longer sides a, b, of the frame of the dress
holder are slightly curved at a², 62, the said curved or opposed parts a², 6ª, being
convex, the inner opposed edges of the sides a, b, forming at the lower part of the
frame or holder a nearly parallel slot e; e is the wedge-shaped gripping part by
which the dress is gripped.
In using the dress holder that part of the dress to be held is raised and passed
through the wide upper part of the triangular frame a, 6 c, and the said part of
the dress is depressed into the narrow or wedge-like space e near the bottom of
the holder. The dress is thus wedged between the taporing or curved inner sides
of the lower part of the holder and held very securely, the weight of the dress or
the pulling downwards of the dress tending to tighten the grip of the holder on
the dress. To liberate the dress the portion gripped by the holder is raised from
the narrow wedge-shaped part e² into the upper or wide part. The dress is thereby
released and may be passed or drawn back out of the holler.
Instead of making the dress holder or dress suspender from one piece of sheet
metal or from a piece of wire, the ends of which are joined at the bottom of the
holder, the body part of the holder may be made of wire and the head of sheet
metal, as represented in Figure 3, the sheet metal head carrying a ring g, through
which a cord is passed for attaching the dress holder to the waist of the wearer.
In applying my improvements to stocking suspenders I make the frame in the
ways already described and represented in the Drawing with respect to a dress
holder, excepting that I make it much smaller, and employ, by preference, but one
undulation or loop in the short side of the frame for the purpose of connecting it
by a cord or otherwise to the article of dress.
Instead of making the dress holder or dress suspender- or stocking suspender of
sheet metal or wire, or partly of wire and partly of sheet metal, it may be made
by the casting process of iron, or brass, or other metal or alloy, or it may be
made of some hard non-metallic material, such as ivory, bone, wood, ebonite, and
the like.
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 claim as my Inven-
tion the improvements in ladies' dress holders or dress suspenders and in stocking
suspenders herein-before described, and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing,
that is to say, a dress holder or dress suspender or a stocking suspender consisting
of a triangular frame, which is attached to the waist of the wearer or to the article
of dress by means of its short upper side, the two longer sides of the said triangular

page_text: frame depending from the said short side, a portion of the dress or stocking being
held or released by depressing it in or raising it from the narrow wedge-shaped
space between the longer sides of the frame and near their junction with one
another, substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Charles Alkridge, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
WILLIAM CHARLES ALLDRIDGE. (L.S.)