Davis Mysteries
Given that I am not an expert on this field but just an enthusiast, who try to knowledge a bit more about the sequence of the sewing machines history.
Mystery 1:
The Lost Patents
On early Davis sewing machines, one of the slide-plate to access the shuttle underneath, is engraved with few patents's dates, but 3 of them appear to not exist at the least not in the Job Anthony Davis name and or anyway related to the Company.
1 ............... MAY 7, 1854
2 ............... FEB 26, 1856
3 ............... APR 15, 1867
For the first patent, because I wasn't sure about the right day, I searched all patents that have been issued in May 1854. Not one Letters Patent was issued for the 7th, 17th or 27th of May 1854. (Design's dates?)
However, in May 1854, 12 Specifications for Letters Patent were issued.
By clicking on the aforementioned date, you can see the American patents for that year. Looking for those patents issued in May, it is interesting to note that the Singer patent US 10.974, although it does not correspond to the exact date, could explain why the "The Combination" so called, composed of the Singer, Wheeler & Wilson and Grove & Baker companies, who shared royalties in common on certain patents, claimed that the Davis was an infringement and only by January 1869 the Davis Sewing Machine Company settled the action brought against them, paying to them 40 cents on early Davis machine manufactured.
Although the inventor (I.M. Singer) doesn't mention a walking foot or a vertical feed, this patent appear to be an early development of a walking foot or vertical feed or anyway a new method of feeding the cloth.
For the second lost patent I did exactly the same. In February 1856 only four patents for sewing machines were issued.
Two of them were issued on the right date but not in J. A. Davis's name. Let's see them.
The third and last patent, trouble again.
Apr 15, 1867
not patents for this date and unable to locate patent US 63.778
To get to the point I ask myself why Job Anthony Davis or the Company wanted or needed those three patents engraved on their machines?
to be continued....more patents are lost!
Mystery 2:
The vibrating shuttle's development
"Vibrating Shuttle System"
sequential american patents
US 7.776 Allen B. Wilson November 12, 1850
US 11.934 Daniel Harris November 14, 1854
reissues
RE345 Allen B. Wilson January 22, 1856
RE414 Allen B. Wilson December 9, 1856
US 27.208 Job A. Davis February 21, 1860
US 174.703 Porter & Baker Mach 14, 1876
An improved version of the White S.M. Co., vibrating shuttle sewing machine, was introduced in 1883.
Robert Whitehill development came only in 1885. He designed a new machine around it which Singer bought and popularized. US 326.821
It's surprising to me that it was never mentioned the connection of Charles Morey, Job A. Davis and Daniel Harris (Dorcas Sewing Machine) with the vibrating shuttle machines. Although the paternity of the vibrating shuttle machine is attributed to Mr. Allen B. Wilson, what about the British patent GB 12.752 issued to Morey in August 30,1849 or February 28, 1850?
Where am I wrong?
Patent Models Index
Guide to the Collections of the
National Museum of America History
Smithsonian Institution
Volume 1: Listings by
Patent Number and Invention
Volume 2: Listings by
Inventor and Residence of Inventor
by Barbara Suit Janssen