Vintage logging – patents

Each Saturday morning I review 10 vintage logging, forestry and saw milling photos. This week’s review of vintage logging is about the numerous patents that were filed for inventions claimed in the saw milling, lumber and logging industry.

Click on the images to view larger pictures.

1901 Patent illustration of a lumber jack. Filed by Nelson R. Deppe of Maysville, North Carolina. The invention claims to improve on the lumber piling jack, by which a piece of lumber is placed upon it so that it acts as a pivot or balance point to aid in stacking lumber.

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1901-07-05 Be it known that I, ESTES CARNEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Prairiegrove, in the county of Washington and State of Arkansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Sawmills; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to woodworking machinery, and particularly to the class for sawing logs into slabs or boards, and aims to provide a sawmill involving structural features and which is readily portable, so as to be transported from place to place and set up for use with the greatest despatch possible, thereby saving time and labor and enabling a maximum amount of work to be performed in a given time. The machine is specially adapted for use in rural districts where a limited amount of timber is to be cut up for available service, the machine being moved from one pile to another in a circuit or as required.

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1903-04-21 Be it known that I, WILBUR L. HUNT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Audubon, in the county of Becker and State of Minnesota, have invented certain newfound useful improvements in Portable Sawmills; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. My invention relates to improvements in portable sawmills; and its object is to provide a machine of this character which when not in use may be easily and quickly taken apart, folded compactly, and mounted upon wheels for convenient transportation.

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Inventor William M. Wilkin of Mobile, Alabama, US claims improvement to the gang saw mill by first being able to saw two logs at once as well as other operational and structural improvements.

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Inventor William M. Wilkin of Mobile, Alabama claims improvements to the gang saw mills when cutting quarter sawn lumber and when dealing with cutting two logs at once.

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WYLY E. DOWNING, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ovett, in the county of Jones and State of Mississippi, have invented a new and useful Saw-Log Nigger, of which the following is a specification. This invention has relation to friction niggers used in connection with saw mill carriages for turning logs and it consists in the novel construction and arrangement of its parts as hereinafter shown and described. The object of the invention is to provide a power operated device of the character indicated which is adapted to turn a log while resting upon a saw carriage and thus relieve the operators of the arduous labor of so manipulating the log manually.

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Inventor Harry S. Hunter of Pittsburgh, PA claims improvement to the determining of the position and adjustment of removeable saw teeth., patent 1144131 19014-07-07 HUNTER SAW & MACHINE COMPANY, Harry S Hunter, A means to determine position of adjustable saw teeth.

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Inventor Charles L. Sockwell of North Wilkesboro, NC, US, assignor to New Williams Mill Company Inc., claims an improved sawing attachment especially adapted for use on a Fordson tractor.

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Inventor Charles E. Knapp, of Chardon, Ohio, assignor to the Kent Machine Company, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, claims improvements to the log sawing rigs whereby the saw is truely portable while maintianing its rigidity for effecient operation.

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Inventor Geroge E. Bodenhamer of Klamath Falls, OR, US, claims an invention as it relates to the tools that shape the points of the teeth on saws, and is particularly adapted to be used on band saws found in saw mills. The objectives are to provide a method of changing the shape of the teeth by rotating the dies within the shaping tool to different positions, thereby creating different shaped teeth. Next, to change the shape of the teeth without having to remove the dies from the shaping tools. Also, to provide a locking clamp for clamping the tool relative to the saw tooth, automatically after the tool has been positioned relative to the tooth. And finally, to provide a one tooth stop and rest that can be readily adjusted to the proper position.

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