William Wooten's 1869 School Desk and Seat Patent Model of School Desk and Seat
date: label: date made
content: 1869
label: associated date
content: 1868
label: patent date
content: 1869-03-02
name: label: patentee
content: Wooton, William S.
label: transfer
content: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
label: inventor
content: Wooton, William S.
notes: label: Description
content: William Wooton from Richmond, Indiana, received a U.S. patent for an improved school desk. Patent no. 87386 was issued on March 2, 1869.
label: Description
content: This patent was an improvement on Patent No. 83896. By improving the brace and the mechanism for locking, Wooton designed a way to fold the seat and desk together noiselessly. The desktop folds up completely to form an additional backrest. The mechanism for locking the desk is claimed in the patent by Wooton as well. The model is made of polished dark wood and has metal hinges. There is an indent for placing pencils, and underneath the desk there is storage.
label: Description
content: William Wooton was born in 1835. He joined George H. Grant & Company after John P. Allen died in 1868. In 1870, Wooton formed the Wooton Desk Company after he won a five-dollar prize for a school desk at the Indiana State Fair in 1868. His best known invention was patent 155604, the Wooton’s Patent Cabinet Office Secretary. In 1884, he retired and became a preacher. He was known for introducing a revolutionary type of furniture into the business world during the Industrial Revolution. Most museums have "The Desk of the Age” in their collection. A 94-page book, published in 1983, by the Indiana State and Oakland Museums, is devoted solely to the history of the Wooton Desk Company and the evolution of the 19th century office. William Wooton died in 1907 at the age of 72. His last name is often spelled Wooten however the patent specifications clearly spell his last name Wooton as does the advertising for the company.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: referenced in patent specifications
content: United States: Indiana, Richmond
topic: label: general subject association
content: Education
label: classified
content: Patent Models
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Education
label: See more items in
content: American History Education Collection
label: See more items in
content: Cultures & Communities
label: See more items in
content: Patent Model School Seats and Desks
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: CL.249602.581
label: catalog number
content: 249602.581
label: accession number
content: 249602
label: patent number
content: 87,386
objectType: label: Object Name
content: school desk
label: Object Name
content: model
label: Object Name
content: desk model
label: Object Type
content: Patent Model
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 7 1/2 in x 9 1/2 in x 7 in; 19.05 cm x 24.13 cm x 17.78 cm