Another Forgotten Corner at the Patent Office

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The articles I posted last week about a new patent classification I hadn’t looked into reminded me of this one – I shot some pictures of this one a couple years ago, but I never got around to posting it:

A tug on the ringtop pulls the pencil out of the sheath and extends the mechanism in one motion . . .

and exposes the imprint on the upper portion of the barrel:

“Mabie Todd & Co. No. 3 / Pat. Mar. 10, ‘91.”  Don’t look in American Writing Instrument Patents 1799-1910; it isn’t in there.  The date refers to patent number 447,879, issued to John C.W. Jeffreys and George Dickman of London, England and assigned – not surprisingly – to George W. Mabie.

The title of the invention, “Suspension device for pencils, &c.” provides a good indication as to why this one doesn’t turn up in my book, since the patent is actually for the tube with that spur-shaped attachment to the band.  It’s found under Class 63, “Jewelry,” subclass 22, “Bar: Devices comprising means to be passed through a buttonhole to secure the chain to the clothing.”  Not much writing to be done there, but since pencils were often carried in this manner back in the day, there’s a gold mine of patents for pencil researchers in CCL 63/22 that you won’t find anywhere else.