The Presidential Patent Collection: Cloth Making Patent Signed by Thomas Jefferson

Hi, I’m Rich Beem. I’m a Chicago patent attorney and I’m talking about the collection of valuable, original old patents in my collection that are signed by Presidents, Secretary of State, and Attorney General of the United States. This is one of the most interesting items in the collection. This is a patent that was issued to Richard Chappell on an invention of a machine for dressing flax and hemp. This was for making cloth. The patent was signed by Thomas Jefferson, as President of the United States. It was also signed by James Madison, as Secretary of State and by Caesar Rodney, Attorney General of the United States. These are original autographs on the original, one of a kind parchment document that was given to the inventor. We know that because the government’s copy burned down in the fire of 1836, when the old patent office burned down while the new one was being built. You can see the discoloration, you can see the fading of the ink, you can see the creases, you can see how the ribbon and the seal are faded. Now other interesting parts of this item include a miniature portrait of the inventor. This was Richard Chappell, the inventor, and you can see the old-fashioned – to our eye – clothing, the up-turned collar, the particular kind of tie that he had, the vest, and the long suit coat with the up-turned collar. That was the popular dress in that day, in the early 1800s. This patent was issued in 1809. Now this part of the patent is actually a model of the cloth that was made according to the invention and it also happens to include a family history. This is what is popularly known as a sampler. So the sampler was done by a young person in the family and it traces the family history. The father was Dan Chappell, born in 1766. His wife was Experience Wash. They were married in 1782 and they had these children: Richard Chappell – who was the inventor, was the eldest child. He was born in 1783. And there’s a list here of his siblings. And then there is – sadly – the death of the first person in this family who was Dan Chappell that was the father of the inventor Richard Chappell. So this is an old, original patent on a machine for dressing flax and hemp. This patent was signed by Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Caesar Rodney. Thank you for joining me for this part of our tour. I’m Rich Beem. Thanks!