Untitled record

Sheets—Sheet 1,.

No 218,883.

S. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

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N. PETERS. PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON, D C.

Sheets—Sheet 2.

8. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

<img file="US218883A_D0002.tif" />

N. PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, 0. C.

Sheets—Sheet 3.

S. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

<img file="US218883A_D0003.tif" />

N.PETERS. PHOTO-UTHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON, D C.

Sheets—Sheet 4.

S. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

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<td> r J) % N.PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER.. WASHINGTON, D. C.'</td><td></td>

Sheets—Sheet 5.

S. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

<img file="US218883A_D0005.tif" />

N. PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D. C.

Sheets-Sheet 6.

S. W. HOPKINS.

Sign-Holder.

No. 218,883. Patented Aug. 26, 1879.

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N.PETERS, PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON, D C.

United States Patent Office.

SIDNEY W. HOPKINS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO ANNA. MARTA HOPKINS, OF SAME PLACE.

IMPROVEMENT IN SI GN-HOLDERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 218,883, dated August 26, 1879; application filed December 27, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Sidney Wright Hopkins, of the city of New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Sign-Holders and Advertising-Signs, of which the following is: a full, true, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention consists of an improvement in sign-holders and signs for advertising purposes, especially such as are intended to be attached: and fastened to posts, pillars, columns, or other vertical supports, and which are arranged to allow of the ready substitution of one advertisement for another.

My sign-holder is so arranged that, first, it can be readily and quickly attached to a post or other upright support, and quite as readily and quickly be detached and removed therefrom, and be reattached to another post or other upright support without interfering with, disarranging, or in the slightest degree disturbing any of the advertising-signs which it holds; secondly, it will securely hold, and at the same time expose: to view, any given number of advertising-signs, of any desired or fixed width or of different widths, upon each or all of which advertisements may be displayed; thirdly, it will allow of the ready and instant . removal of any one or more of the advertising signs and the substitution of others without disturbing any of its fellows, or without the necessity of either removing or disconnecting the sign-holder or any part of if from the post or support to which it is attached ; fourthly, each and every advertising-sign is held in its proper place in the sign-bolder, and securely . locked therein by an apparatus which prevents , the alteration or removal of any of the advertising-signs which it contains without the use of the proper key; fifthly, the same apparatus which holds and securely locks the advertis. ing-signs in their proper places iu the signholder at the same time also holds and securely locks the sign-holder in position on, and prevents its removal from, the post or other upright support to which it is attached without - the use of the proper key; sixthly, it can be attached and permanently fastened to a post or other upright support independent of the locking apparatus before referred to; seventhly, it is reversible and interchangeable in all its parts, and its contained signs are interchangeable. one with another.

My invention will be clearly understood from the accompanying drawings, in which Figure . 1 represents a perspective view of my signholder in position on the post or supportingcolumn, with the advertisements displayed thereon. One of the locking contrivances is opened and raised, and the other two are closed and in position, and one of the advertising-signs is partially withdrawn. Fig. 2 represents an inside view, in perspective, of one of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, (which forms a section or one-third of my sign-holder when attached to the post,) with the advertising-signs and locking contrivances removed. Fig. 3 represents an outside view, in perspective, of one of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, showing the supportinggrooves or slideways into and between which the signs are drawn. Fig. 4 represents a ton or bottom view of my sign-holder when attached to a post, showing the adjustable clamps by means of which it is fastened thereto. Fig. 5 represents a perspective view of one of the reversible locking contrivances, showing the retaining-lips and the hinge-hasps at each end. Fig. 6 represents a sectional view of one of the ends of the sign-holder, with the locking contrivance removed, showing the supportinggrooves or slideways into and between which the signs are drawn. Fig. 7 represents my adjustable clamp in perspective, showing the three supporting - arms, with the fasteningnuts or thumb-screws attached thereto. Fig. 8 represents one of the supporting-arms of the adjustable clamp, with the fastening-nut or thumb-screw belonging thereto, unscrewed.

My apparatus consists, generally, of three reversible skeleton embracing-frames, triplicates of each other, and made of wood or metal, or a combination of wood and metal, or other equivalents, and the vertical braces j jj,ppp, and ttt, placed at certain distances apart, and fastened to the series of horizontal framing-ribs y, which are placed at equal distances from each other, and are straight on the outside, and so shaped on the inside as to form

218,883 when put together a triangular or three-sided sign-holder.

The three reversible skeleton embracingframes AAA are kept firmly in their places when joined together around a post, and are. prevented from shifting or moving upward, downward, or sidewise by the entry ot the tenons o into the tenon-chambers w, as shown in Fig. 2. · .

On the outside edge of each of the horizontal framing-ribs y are the series of supporting-grooves or slideways lc, as shown in hig. 3, which are made of wood, metal, or other suitable material, and adapted to support the advertising-signs OOO, which are made of paper, glass, tin, iron, or other material, and adapted to slide in between any two of the supporting-grooves or slideways lc, as shown in Fig. 1, the lower sign being practically withdrawn.

Hinged by the hinge-hasps η n to each end of both the top and bottom horizontal framing-ribs y of the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames AAA, and covering the, outside vertical opening formed by joining them together, are the three reversible locking contrivances D D D, which are triplicates of each other, and are made precisely alike at both ends, of wood or metal, or both combined, or other suitable material, and are arranged to be opened and closed and fastened at either or both ends, and are adapted to grasp and securely hold and lock together the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames A A A, and, by means of the retaining-lips x, to hold in position and securely lock therein the advertising-signs C C C, as shown in Fig. 1.

At both the top and bottom of the reversible skeleton embracing-frames AAA, and at each end thereof, the hinge-hasps η n pass over the ends of the twin vertical staplebraces p p p, to which they are securely fastened by the double hooks r r r, and they also pass over the twin staples s s s, to which they are also fastened by the double hooks r r r, and securely locked in position thereon by means of the padlocks///, by means of which the three reversible skeleton embracing-frames AAA are more securely and tightly held together and in position against and around the post E, as shown in Fig. 4. Surrounding and at the same time tightly clasping the post or supporting-column E, one above and the other below the sign-holder, are the two adjustable clamps g g, which are securely and firmly fastened in their respective places thereon by means of the bolts and nuts I 11. Extending outward from three sides of each of the clamps are the three supporting-arms h h h, to which the three vertical supporting-braces j jj are attached and securely fastened into position by the fastening-nuts or thumb-screws m m m, by means of which each of the three reversible skeleton-embracing frames A A A is separately and securely suspended from above and supported from below in its place against and around the post E, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

It will be seen that my sign-holder is reversible and also interchangeable one part with every other part—that is to say, each and every skeleton embracing-frame is reversible, and will fit each and every other skeleton embracing-frame· when placed in position against and around a post, and each and every locking contrivance is reversible, and will fit each and every place provided to receive one; and each and' every clamp is reversible as well as adjustable and interchangeable one part with another, and will receive and support each and every skeleton embracing-frame, so that a sign-holder can be formed by placing together any three of the skeleton embracingframes without any regard whatever to the top or bottom of either of them—that is to .say, as to which end shall be upward and which end downward when being joined together.

It will also be seen that advertising-signs of any specific or desired width, and also of different widths, either or both, can at the same time be used in my sign-holder—that is to say, advertising-signs can be used of any width that will admit of their being slid between and into any two of the slideways by simply covering any desired number of the intermediate slideways. An advertising-sign, for instance, might be used covering the entire face of one of the skeleton embracing-frames by sliding it between and into the extreme upper and lower slideways and covering all the intermediate ones.

I have heretofore made application for a two-sided sign-board,_eand I disclaim anything herein shown conflicting with that application. This sign-board differs from that in being provided with sign-holders visible from all sides