Welcome! 

Register :: Login
Manufacturers Index - George C. Taft

George C. Taft
Worcester, MA, U.S.A.
Manufacturer Class: Wood Working Machinery & Metal Working Machinery

Patents
This page contains information on patents issued to this manufacturer.

Submitting Patent Information

If you find a patent number or patent date by this manufacturer that is not on this list, please contact the Site Historian.


Key to Links for Patent Information

USPTO = U.S. Patent Office . Images of the actual patent can be viewed on the U.S. Patent Office web site but a special TIFF viewer must be installed with your browser in order properly work. More information on how to configure your computer to view these patents can be found at TIFF image Viewers for Patent Images.
DATAMP = Directory of American Tool And Machinery Patents . A sister site to VintageMachinery.org with information on patents related to machinery and tools. A much easier user interface than the USPTO's for finding information on machinery patents.

Patent Number Date Title Name City Description
16,900 Mar. 24, 1857 Metal Drill George C. Taft Worcester, MA
17,609 Jun. 16, 1857 Screw Wrench George C. Taft Worcester, MA Double male-threaded "nut" parallel to the shank engages female threads on the inside of the handle ferule and the inside of the adjustable jaw. The specifications differentiate this design from Loring Coes' April 16, 1841 patent 2,054 and Nathan Whipple's May 24, 1854 patent (patent application denied; the patent application including drawing appears in: COLLINS COMPANY vs. LORING COES, et al: Pleadings and Evidence. Boston, 1879).
Ken Cope's "American Wrench Makers 1830-1930" identifies the partnership of George C. Taft and John Gleason as producers of this patent, but it was not included in a list of patents Taft "licensed" to Daniel Hawkins, Jr. in 1859.
17,944 Aug. 04, 1857 Self-feeding drill George C. Taft Worcester, MA
20,379 May. 25, 1858 Improved Screw-Wrench George C. Taft Worcester, MA Adjusting 'rosette' is threaded to bear against a rack on shank, and has second set of threads engaging threads in the adjustable jaw. In the specifications, Taft distinguishes his patent from Coes' earlier patents 2,054, 9,945 and 11,208, and his own earlier patent 17,609.
This patent, along with 23,725 and 23,798 was "licensed" to Daniel Hawkins, Jr. in 1859.
23,725 Apr. 19, 1859 Wrench George C. Taft Worcester, MA "The thumb nut operates a right and left hand screw.." - from a contemporary catalog description.
In the specifications it is described as an improvement of Taft's June 16th, 1857 patent No. 17,609. In actual appearance it is an alteration of Taft's May 25, 1858 patent 20,379.
The wrench appears in an 1859 hardware catalog as "COE'S NEW PATENT WRENCH," although a July 1859 contract between Taft & D.A. Hawkins included Hawkins' right to produce the wrench (along with 20,379 and 23,798) with royalties to be paid to Taft.
No example of the wrench is known to have survived.
23,798 Apr. 26, 1859 Wrench George C. Taft Worcester, MA Taft describes this as an improvement on his May 25, 1858 patent 20,379. The double threading of the adjusting nut would accelerate the adjustment speed, and it travels on a protected shaft extending from the ferule so there is no extended "tail" as in 20,379.
Known examples have no visible markings. The patent (along with 20,379 and 23,725 was "licensed" to Daniel Hawkins, Jr. in 1859.
24,247 May. 31, 1859 Manufacturing the Heads and Shanks of Screw Wrenches George C. Taft Worcester, MA The manufacturing process described would produce the head and shank of a monkey wrench by welding two pieces of iron together (Figs. 1- 6) rather than forging the head and shank from a single piece (figs. 7 - 9). Part of the specifications cite the cost savings and gains in strength resulting from the improved process.
Wrenches marked with this patent date are part of an evolving design sequence extending over most of the 1850s, and produced by Taft and a sequence of associates at Worcester.
27,320 Feb. 28, 1860 Drill George C. Taft Worcester, MA
28,020 Apr. 24, 1860 Letter Copying Press George C. Taft Worcester, MA The key idea in the patent is casting the platten and threaded extension in one piece; the patent claims other details of construction including the socket in the top crossing frame.
At various points in his career, Taft manufactured letter copying presses. Patent office rules relating to reissue suggest Taft did not produce a press conforming to this patent at the time of issue.
He patented an "improved" letter copy press in 1864 (patent no. 43,266).
30,774 Nov. 27, 1860 Drill Frame George C. Taft Worcester, MA
43,372 Jun. 28, 1864 Improvement in drills George C. Taft Worcester, MA
72,114 Dec. 10, 1867 Improvement in variable crank for boring-machines George C. Taft Worcester, MA
RE3,760 Dec. 14, 1869 Variable crank for boring machine George C. Taft Worcester, MA
99,495 Feb. 01, 1870 Improved machine for drilling metals George C. Taft Worcester, MA
99,494 Feb. 01, 1870 Improvement in Twine Cutter George C. Taft Worcester, MA A twine or thread cutter designed to clip to one's clothing. The cutting edge is on a spring which insures the thread or twine contacts a sharp edge and is cut.
107,121 Sep. 06, 1870 Nail Extractor George C. Taft Worcester, MA The pinching jaws are adjustable to compensate for wear. This patent indicates the range of George C. Taft's interests. He held several key wrench patents of the mid-19th Century.
113,815 Apr. 18, 1871 Improvement in drilling-machines George C. Taft Worcester, MA
RE5,417 May. 20, 1873 Improvement in Letter Copying Presses George C. Taft Worcester, MA In this reissue, the claims focus on two features: the platen with threaded socket extension, and the socket in the overhead frame, which combine to to enclose the operating thread and protect it from gathering dust.
145,975 Dec. 30, 1873 Improvement in nail-extractors George C. Taft Worcester, MA
178,204 May. 30, 1876 Copying-Press George C. Taft Worcester, MA Hinged on one edge, with alternative screw or lever clamping provisions for the opposite edge. Both the hinges and clamping mechanism can be adjusted to vary the thickness of the space between the plates.
257,532 May. 09, 1882 Drilling-machine George C. Taft Worcester, MA
16,985 Jun. 18, 1883 Improvements in drilling machines George C. Taft Worcester, MA "Self-Feeding" drill with provisions for varying the spindle speed "to meet the exigencies" of the work.
The patent corresponds to U.S. patent 257,532; Taft produced these drills at Worcester, Mass.
288,510 Nov. 13, 1883 Drilling Machine George C. Taft Worcester, MA
405,210 Jun. 11, 1889 Saw-guide Alfred Goulding Worcester, MA