James T. Baggs was one of the sons in planing-mill operator R. J. Baggs & Sons. In 1872-73 he developed and patented an early tilting-arbor tablesaw that addressed the problem of the blade moving laterally as the blade was tilted: a cam mechanism compensated for that lateral movement.. He manufactured his saw under the name J. T. Baggs His clever tilting-arbor design would soon be superseded by John Connell's invention of the trunnion mechanism as manufactured by Connell & Dengler. Baggs' venture as a machine manufacturer appears to have been short-lived.
Information Sources
- November 1872 Manufacturer & Builder, in an article on that year's Cincinnati Industrial Exposition, lists J. T. Baggs as the maker of a "universal sawing machine".
- 1871-72 Wiggins and Weaver's Ohio River Directory, page 148, under the entry for Bridgeport. "Baggs, J. T., of R. J. Baggs & Sons, Bank, nr National Planing Mill. / Baggs, R. J. & Sons, National Planing Mill, Bank. R. J. Baggs, A. J. Baggs, J. T. Baggs."