Danipl D Wlulkers 

 \\V HAH RET 



Fis ■ 



/, 



.v.;/.'^ . /y/,// 



Figure 6i. — 1865: Not all multipurpose innovations resulted from the use of new materials. Daniel D. 

 Whitker patented a combination saw and rabbet plane little different from one illustrated by Andre-Jacob 

 Roubo in his L'Art du menuisier in 1769. (Wash drawing from U.S. Patent Office, October 4, 1865, 

 Record Group 241, the National Archives.) 



which combined '"an adjustable saw with an adjust- 

 able fence or gage, both being attached to a stock 

 with handle similar to a plane, forming together a 

 tool combining the properties of the joiner's plow 

 and fillister" (fig. 61 ). Nor was Whitker's idea simply 

 a drawing-board exercise. It was produced com- 

 mercially and was well advertised, as seen in the 

 circular reproduced in figure 62. 



In sum, these ideas produced a major break with 

 the traditional shape of the bench plane. William 

 Foster in 1843 (pat. 3,355), Birdsill Holly in 1852 

 (pat. 9,094), and VV. S. Loughborough in 1859 (pat. 

 23,928) are particularly good examples of the radical 

 departure from the wooden block. And, in the 

 period after the Civil War, C. G. Miller (discussed 

 on p. 213 and in fig. 63), B. A. Blandin (fig. 64), 

 and Russell Phillips (pat. 106,868) patented mul- 

 tipurpose metallic bench planes of excellent de- 

 sign. It should be pointed out that the patentees 

 mentioned above represent only a few of the great 



number that tried to improve the plane. Only the 

 trend of change is suggested by the descriptions and 

 illustrations presented here. The cumulative effect 

 awaited a showcase, and the planemakers found it at 

 the Centennial Exhibition of 1876 held in Philadelphia. 

 The impact of these new planes at the Exhibition 

 caused some retrospection among the judges: 



The planes manufactured in Great Britain and in other 

 countries fifty years ago were formed of best beech- 

 wood; the plane irons were of steel and iron welded 

 together; the jointer plane, about 21 inches long, was a 

 bulky tool; the jack and hand planes were of the same 

 materials. Very little change has been made upon the 

 plane in Great Britain, unless in the superior workman- 

 ship and higher quality of the plane iron.i^ 



The solid wood-block plane, varying from country 

 to country only in the structure of its handles and 

 body decoration, had preserved its integrity of design 



'» Walker, ed., Reports and Awards, group 15, p. 13. 



220 



BULLETIN 24 1: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



