1858 Patent
Williams & Orvis Treadle Sewing Machine
This Williams and Orvis antique
treadle
sewing machine was first patented in 1858. Williams & Orvis was a Boston-based
company that manufactured sewing machines for just a few short years from 1858
to the mid 1860's. The machine was produced in two models with this being
the first model.A patent from 1858 would date this machine as one of the first generation of sewing machine patented and produced in the US. This information can be found in the book on antique sewing machines by Grace Rogers Cooper published by the Smithsonian in the 70's. Additional info can be found in the book on antique sewing machines by Carter Bays.
Very few examples of this machine have survived and I would venture few in as nice condition as this one. This example has a serial # 2912. Carter bays in his book postulates that no more than 7,000 or so of both models were made and that fewer of the first model appear or have survived. This sewing machine body and bed still retains much of the gold gilt decoration that is so often worn off of these early
sewing machines. The black japanned finish is near 100%. The
manufacturer's name and location in the gold lettering are near complete on
the top of the bed. The stitch plate is clearly marked "Patent Applied
For" which I believe would date this from very early in the production period.
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The machines finish is in such nice condition due to the fact that the wooden hood or cover has remained intact with the machine. The cover and table are in original finish which is overall very nice. There are some scuffs and a cosmetic crack in the walnut top cover, but it is minor. There are also some minor scratches in the table top. This sewing machine has spent its life in a controlled climate, and not in an old barn in New England like so many machines that are found. This sewing machine features a fairly unique design that sews a chain stitch using two threads. Most other
machines
from this era sewed a single thread chain stitch, and machines that utilized
a bobbin and sewed a lock stitch had not yet been introduced. The
form is especially striking because of it's petite size.
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This antique treadle sewing machine is also unusual in that it is friction-driven, utilizing a large flywheel that is mounted underneath the table to drive the smaller wheel at the bottom of the machine. The flywheel presses against a rubber 0 ring that is fastened directly to the machine's small drive-wheel. (rubber 0 ring missing) Most other and later sewing machines were driven with a belt to a small flywheel above the table and attached to the end of the sewing machine.
The decorative cast iron treadle looks good, but has been refinished at some point in time. There is a casting crack in one lower leg that has been welded / braised and then was repainted. It looks great from the outside, but upon inspection the inside of this leg shows where the repair was made.
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This is a very rare and hard-to-find early American patented sewing machine in outstanding condition. Highly recommended and this opportunity will knock but once!!!
SSC-WOSM-1
Excellent ......... $4750.00 SPECIAL SALE PRICE $3500
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Grey Patent 1857
"Ne Plus Ultra" Sewing Machine This
is the rarest sewing machine listed on these pages. It was patented in
1857 by Joshua Grey of Boston Mass.
The 1857 patent # 16566 can be
seen here.
Carter Bays has two later versions of this type
sewing machine pictured in his book,
but fails to identify the patentee or give much other information about it. In
Grace Coopers book there is a bit more info, but again speaks about later machines and mis-identifies the patent holder of the machine she pictures as
having been patented by O. L. Reynolds because her machine is missing
the brass baster plate that has the patent info on it in front of the needle
that this machine has. The machine shown in her book is
serial # 110 and says it was made before a later one she mentions that carries a later March
30th 1858 patent date. The 1858 patent shows machines w/ a different style
base, similar to those machines pictured in Bays' book.
This machine is
serial #21, and has the earlier patent info on the baster plate her machine is missing. The patentees name and
date are earlier and different from any of the info she gives and Mr. Grey,
the patent holder of this machine, is not mentioned in either Bays or Cooper's book.
I assume Mr. Grey ran out of money and sold the rights to O. L. Reynolds, who
later re-submitted the patent with some small improvement I suppose.
You can read
his 1858 patent # 19793 here.
That, I believe,
makes this the earliest known and one of but a handful of this rare patented
sewing machine
that has ever turned up.
The machine has almost no finish
on it, but is not heavily rusted or pitted. It actually looks quite nice .
One small piece of one paw foot has some damage. There is also a
break in the main arm driving the needle bar in the rear. The rear is
open, (by design) and is correct as shown. I found an arm
from a different machine with the same idea and have clamped it in place to
allow the machine to operate. It would be an easy fix to attach this arm
or to fashion another to return this machine to its full glory. It has a
great action and sound to it as it click clacks away. The
thread catch and looper mechanism below the base are all present and operable.
It is a very crude but elegant design solution to picking up and sewing a
stitch.
The spool pin is missing, and every machine I have seen has a
different style, so replacing that will be an easy fix as well.
A rare opportunity!!
Highly recommended!!
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RB-GREYPAT-1
Good . . . . . . . . $4950.00
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Raymond
New England Style Sewing Machine
This sewing machine has a picture decal of a
beaver and the name Raymond. There are a lot of different machines
that are generally known as "New England's" There were a series of makers
in the New England area that were known makers of the design. Raymond, and
Raymond and Nettleton were two of them. Most, or many of this style machine are
not marked in any way. Carter Bays in his book identifies machines like
this with a double curl in the lower arm and being Weir machines which are
actually from England.
The condition of this machine is excellent with nearly all the
original black paint remaining and no rust or corrosion to the metal parts.
It has a lot of gold highlighting and other decorations. An interesting machine you do not find every day.
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ISMC-RAYMOND-1
Good + ........$595.00
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New England Style Sewing Machine
The condition of this machine is very good with nearly all the
original black paint remaining and no rust or corrosion to the metal parts.
It has a lot of gold highlighting and floral decorations on the end plate and
bed. It appears that the spool holder is a replacement. An interesting machine you do not find every day.
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ISMC-NE-1
Good + ........$595.00
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New England Style "Weir" Sewing Machine
The condition of this early sewing machine is excellent with nearly all the
original black paint remaining and no rust or corrosion to the metal parts.
It has a lot of gold highlighting and other decorations. Note the double
curl on the lower cross bar. Carter Bays says this is the tell to identify this
type of machine as being the English Weir. They date from the 1860's
-1870's. An interesting machine you do not find every day. It has a
very heavy cast decorative base as well. Nice!!
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ISMC-WEIR-1
Good + ........$595.00 SOLD!
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Early
Paw Foot Style Sewing Machine
This
style of "paw foot" sewing machine is known by several different names and comes
in a number of different variations.
This version is one of the originals,
and marked "Ketchum's Patent" with a mid 1860's patent date on the needle
plate on the top. This patent covers the stitch mechanism, and similar
sewing machines can also be found marked "Shaw & Clark" or "Wilson", just two
of the many competitors in the early sewing machine market.
Paw Foot Machines of this
style date from the mid 1860's and were still being produced into the late 1870's
before more standardized and advanced designs pushed them from the market.
Many of these machines are found with no maker or patent information on them
and they are most probably knockoffs trying to avoid patent infringements.
Some of those machines are very nicely done
This style of these antique sewing
machine is often described by the shape of the pillar or column, and this one
would be known as a fire hydrant model. Other typically seen styles are
the fluted column model, the skinny column, the open or closed square column,
and others. (Too see other examples check the sales archive pages) The operation
and design of all are pretty much the same. This type of antique sewing
machine forms a single thread chain stitch utilizing no bobbin or second thread
to form a lockstitch. Their attractive designs and decoration make them
highly sought after, but they are typically found in horrible condition with
little remaining paint or decoration. This example on the other hand is quite
nice with approximately 80%-90% of the original paint and decoration remaining.
A nice example and worthy of a place in any collection.
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ML-SEW-1
Good + ........$995.00
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1856 Watson
Patent Paw Foot Sewing Machine
The Watson patent sewing machine is
a nice example of one of the earliest patented American sewing machines having a patent date of 1856. The
machine sports a small brass plaque with the patent info, date, and Watson name
on the main cross arm. The firm was located in Bridgeport CT according to
Carter Bay's book on the subject.
The condition is great with large amounts of original decoration
and finish remaining. It appears that at some point a coat of clear gloss
finish was applied, and this may be original. There are areas where it has
turned yellowish as one would expect from a finish over 100 years old. This is a rare and
historically significant sewing machine, and one which does not appear on the
market very often. It has a great look and will make for
great display
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SH-WAT-1
Good + ........$3250.00
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Early
Hancock Style / Lake Patent Integral-Clamp Antique Sewing Machine
The first sewing
machines had barely been invented when Henry J. Hancock received his 1867 patent
for this unusual chain stitch machine. The design of this early sewing
machine, with its very delicate open-frame "skeleton" body and integral clamp,
is incredibly appealing. Examples of this unusual sewing machine are extremely
scarce. Hancock and Lake Patent sewing machines were only produced for 10 or so years, which explains
why they are seldom found and rarely offered for sale. For those antique
sewing machine collectors who seek out examples of the very earliest patents,
this type of sewing machine is always at the top of their "want list". There are no casting flaws or cracks in the delicate casting,
but there is considerable paint loss and the surface exhibits a dark rich
patina that one would expect from a 130-year-old antique. Likewise the brass
parts have not been polished and retain a deep mellow tone. As is generally
the case in machines the needle is missing.
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ISMC-HANCK-1
Good + ........$995.00 SOLD!
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Foley & Williams
F&W Automatic Sewing Machine
The firm Foley & Williams is well known in the
sewing machine world. In addition to the F & W Automatic which is smaller in size
but similar looking
to a Wilcox & Gibbs, and probably designed to compete with that machine, Foley &
Williams also produced the Reliable, a toy machine, as well as the hard to find
and desirable line of wooden circular toy sewing machines like the Yankee,
Practical,
Triumph, Pony, and others.
The F & W Automatic machine dates from the very early 1900's and should hardly
be called a "toy", although it measures just 7" tall. It is really well
engineered and well made, and was marketed as being the ideal machine for use by both
children learning to sew and their mothers who wanted a small and reliable
machine for mending and other small sewing tasks. Ads for it proudly proclaim that it is the "Perfect Chain Stitch Machine High Speed,
Strong and Substantial". Note from the groove in the handwheel that it was
designed so it could be set up in a treadle and foot-powered, as well as used as
a handcrank on the tabletop.
This machine is operational, and in pretty nice condition.
There is considerable wear to some of the decals and decoration, but overall it is pretty nice.
You can oftentimes find these in their original boxes, and the instructions and
advertising on the box inform us that this machine was offered for the large sum
of $5.00 back near the turn of the century.
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ISMC-F W-1
Good + ........$350.00
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Spenser
"Automatic Hand Sewing Machine"
The Spenser Sewing Machine comes in a few
different configurations. The patents were taken out in the early 1900's
and it looks like it was meant to be competition for the well known and more
common Wilcox & Gibbs that was all the rage about this time. This is the
larger more complicated model they offered. Ads for it have been found and
they offered it as a real machine in magazines like Harpers for the price of
$10.00 at the same time that smaller cast iron toy machines cost $5.00 or less,
so we can assume that this would be a far rarer machine than many of those
cheaper and more commonly bought models.
There is a lot of
the information about the patents on the stitch plate.
The condition of this machine is excellent with nearly all the
original black paint remaining and no rust or corrosion to the metal parts.
An interesting machine you do not find every day.
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ISMC-SPENSER-1
Good + ........$450.00
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2
Spenser Travel Size
/ Child-Size Antique Sewing Machines
Here are two more variations of the Spenser TSM. The one on the right has
the rare speed enhancer, and on the left id the simple crank model. Note
that the other one offered above has a wheel.
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Left . . . Very Good . . . . . . $395.00
Right . . . Very Good . . . . . . $595.00
ISMC-SPEN-2 IOWA-SPEN-3
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Larry & Carole Meeker