Invention and the Patent Model
Patent models, once required with every patent application, reveal the leading edge of nineteenth-century technology, advances in industry, and everyday innovations for the home.
By Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Patent Office from Picturesque Washington (1888) by Joseph West MooreSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Between 1790 and 1880, the US Patent Office required inventors to submit a three-dimensional physical model with their patent applications.
These models, which were often miniature and worked like the full-size inventions, were displayed publicly in the Patent Office in Washington, DC.
North Hall Patent Office from Picturesque Washington (1888) by Joseph West MooreSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
The Patent Office Museum of Models was a popular tourist attraction in Victorian-era Washington, DC.
In his 1888 guidebook, Picturesque Washington, Joseph West Moore wrote:
The Museum of Models is contained in four lofty, magnificent halls... Here are to be seen 300,000 models of patented articles, arranged in classes and subdivisions, and filling hundreds of spacious cases, all properly labeled and indexed.
South Hall of the Patent Office from Picturesque Washington (1888) by Joseph West MooreSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
By means of these models one can trace the progress of every line of industry, from crude designs to the perfected machine, wonderful in construction and almost human in action.
...it is a marvelous exhibition of human capability, and can be inspected for hours, even days, with plentiful profit and enjoyment.
Relic from the second Patent Office fire (1877) by UnknownSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
The Patent Office suffered devastating fires in 1836 and 1877 and many models and patent records were lost. In 1880, the Patent Office rescinded the model requirement for new applications, citing the fire hazard and limited space. The model room remained open for another decade, but public interest eventually waned.
Amorphous mass of resolidified brass and bronze (principally) from parts of patent models destroyed by 1877 fire in the Patent Office. MC.336683.
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In June 1908, the Smithsonian sent its horse-drawn wagon to the Patent Office Building (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery, seen here) to make its first accession of 284 patent models.
In 1926, Congress passed a bill to dispose of the Patent Office’s remaining models, giving the Smithsonian first choice. The Smithsonian ultimately retained about 10,000 patent models.
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The National Museum of American History (NMAH) still cares for those patent models today.
Patent Model highlights
The National Museum of American History's patent models represent the leading edge of nineteenth-century technology, and it is breathtaking to approach the models and realize that Thomas Edison or Isaac Singer had once held these objects in their hands. Yet, they also reflect the homogeneity of the white, male inventors of the period.
Sewing Machine Patent Model (1851) by Isaac M. SingerSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Isaac Singer’s patented sewing machine employed a straight needle, operating in a vertical, reciprocating motion to create a lock stitch.
This early, heavy-duty Singer machine was designed for use in the manufacturing trades rather than in the home.
Isaac M. Singer, Sewing Machine Patent Model, US Patent 8,294 (1851). TE.T06054.
Edison Telegraph Ticker Patent Model (1873) by Thomas EdisonSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Thomas Edison made his early reputation as an inventor by designing an improved stock ticker for the Gold & Stock Telegraph Company.
The modified telegraph receiver printed a company’s alphabetical stock symbol and current stock price on a paper roll called a ticker tape.
Thomas A. Edison, Gold & Stock telegraph ticker, US Patent 140,488 (1873). EM.252616.
Harvester Patent Model (1877-11-13) by William N. WhiteleySmithsonian's National Museum of American History
William Whiteley’s multifunction harvester reflected the mechanization of agriculture.
It had a single large wheel and driver’s seat for steering the horses and manipulating the mower, reaper, and rake attachments.
William N. Whiteley, Whiteley Harvester Patent Model, US Patent 197,192 (1877). AG.197192.
Invention for Improvement in Artificial Legs (1863) by Dubois D. ParmeleeSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Dubois Parmelee's “Artificial Leg” included an atmospheric pressure-conforming rubber bucket molded from the patient’s remaining limb. Parmelee held several patents using India-rubber.
Parmelee describes the advantages of his artificial limb in the patent application: "it can be fastened to the stump without the use of straps around the waist or shoulder, and it requires no tedious fitting... Furthermore, my knee-joint works with the least possible friction. It is simple, cheap, durable, and not liable to get out of order."
Dubois D. Parmelee, Invention for Improvement in Artificial Legs, US Patent 37,637 (1863). 1978.0273.07.
Patent Model of a Pin Making Machine (1841-01) by John Ireland HoweSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
After physician John I. Howe observed pins being made by hand, he designed and patented a machine that automated the process.
Patent Model of a Pin Making Machine (1841) by John Ireland HoweSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Howe’s rotary process to draw metal, sharpen a point, and form a blunt head from a single strand of wire was a breakthrough that helped reduce clothing costs and contributed to an industrializing America. One of his machines could produce twenty-four thousand pins in an eleven-hour workday.
John I. Howe, Patent Model of a Pin Making Machine, US Patent 2,013 (1841). MC.308788
Abraham Lincoln's Patent Model (1849) by Abraham LincolnSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
In 1849, Abraham Lincoln received a patent for his method of lifting boats over shoals. A trip to Niagara Falls inspired the design, when he witnessed a grounded boat being lifted over shallow waters.
Although his "adjustable buoyant chambers" proved impractical, Lincoln retains the distinction of being the only US President to be issued a patent.
Abraham Lincoln, Patent Model: Improvement for Buoying Vessels Over Shoals, US Patent 6,469 (1849). PL.031940.
Patent Model for Paper Bag Machine (1879) by Margaret E. KnightSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
It was often difficult for women to secure patents under their own names in the 19th century. Margaret Knight's 26 patents are celebrated because they demonstrate women's participation in the American patent system.
Knight applied for a patent using this model to demonstrate her machine that folded and pasted flat-bottomed paper bags. Her concept continues to be used in the manufacture of today's paper grocery bags.
Margaret E. Knight, Patent Model for Paper Bag Machine, US Patent 220,925 (1879). 1980.0004.01.
Frying Pan Patent Model (1870) by Elizabeth L. PackardSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Elizabeth Packard’s only patented invention was a frying pan designed for simultaneously cooking ham and eggs. The pan uses rounded recesses to keep eggs in place on one side of the pan while cooking.
Frying Pan Patent Model (1870) by Elizabeth L. PackardSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
Packard wrote in her patent application that in the process of frying eggs, the albumen (egg white) breaks, which “causes it to become widely and unevenly diffused over its bottom, whereby the outer portions thereof become so desiccated or burned...as to lose their distinctive character and become insipid or tasteless. My invention obviates this evil.”
Elizabeth L. Packard, Frying Pan Patent Model, US Patent 108,385 (1870). DL.65.0339.
Creeping Baby Doll Patent Model (right side) (1871) by George Pemberton ClarkeSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
George Pemberton Clarke received U.S. patent No. 118,435 in 1871 for his “Natural Creeping Baby Doll.”
This mechanical toy is part of a fascinating continuum of figures built to imitate human life.
Creeping Baby Doll Patent Model (left side) (1871) by George Pemberton ClarkeSmithsonian's National Museum of American History
The doll’s head, two arms and two legs are made of painted plaster. The arms and legs are hinged to a brass clockwork body that actuates the arms and legs in imitation of crawling, but the doll moves forward by rolling along on two toothed wheels.
George Pemberton Clarke, Creeping Baby Doll Patent Model, US Patent 118,4335 (1871). 1984.0923.01.
Browse these patent models and many more in the collection of the National Museum of American History.
Sources:
Hintz, Eric S., Patent Models and Prototypes on Display, Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, June 18, 2018.
Suit Janssen, Barbara. 2010. "Patent Models Index: Guide to the Collections of the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution: Listings by Patent Number and Invention Name, Volume 1." Smithsonian Contributions to History and Technology. 54:1–357
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