﻿THE 
  SEWING 
  MACHINE 
  LEWTON 
  ' 
  573 
  

  

  The 
  copartnership 
  of 
  Singer 
  and 
  Clark 
  was 
  continued 
  until 
  1863, 
  

   when 
  a 
  corporation 
  was 
  formed 
  to 
  continue 
  the 
  business. 
  Singer 
  with- 
  

   drew 
  from 
  active 
  work, 
  receiving 
  40 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  stock 
  of 
  the 
  new 
  

   company," 
  and 
  left 
  America 
  to 
  make 
  his 
  home 
  in 
  Europe. 
  Upon 
  his 
  

   death, 
  12 
  years 
  later, 
  his 
  estate 
  was 
  appraised 
  at 
  $13,000,000. 
  

  

  Singer's 
  original 
  patent 
  model 
  is 
  preserved 
  in 
  the 
  National 
  Museum, 
  

   This 
  type 
  of 
  machine, 
  in 
  use 
  for 
  many 
  years, 
  required 
  less 
  modification 
  

   than 
  any 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  earlier 
  makes 
  of 
  sewing 
  machines. 
  

  

  Isaac 
  Singer 
  was 
  the 
  first 
  to 
  furnish 
  the 
  people 
  with 
  a 
  successfully 
  

   operating 
  and 
  practical 
  sewing 
  machine. 
  After 
  the 
  introduction 
  of 
  the 
  

   Singer 
  machine 
  other 
  inventors, 
  with 
  patents 
  of 
  earlier 
  date, 
  were 
  

   forced 
  to 
  alter 
  their 
  machines 
  to 
  meet 
  the 
  approval 
  of 
  the 
  public. 
  

  

  ALLEN 
  BENJAMIN 
  WILSON 
  

  

  One 
  of 
  the 
  ablest 
  of 
  the 
  early 
  inventors 
  in 
  the 
  field 
  of 
  mechanical 
  

   sewing, 
  and 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  most 
  original, 
  was 
  Allen 
  B. 
  Wilson. 
  This 
  

   ingenious 
  young 
  man 
  completed 
  a 
  practical 
  sewing 
  machine 
  early 
  in 
  

   the 
  year 
  1849 
  without 
  ever 
  having 
  seen 
  one 
  and 
  without 
  having 
  any 
  

   knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  Elias 
  Howe, 
  who 
  was 
  then 
  in 
  London. 
  

  

  In 
  1847, 
  Allen 
  Wilson, 
  at 
  20 
  years 
  of 
  age, 
  was 
  working 
  as 
  a 
  journey- 
  

   man 
  cabinetmaker 
  in 
  Adrian, 
  Mich., 
  far 
  removed 
  from 
  any 
  possible 
  

   contact 
  with 
  the 
  sewing-machine 
  inventors 
  of 
  New 
  England, 
  when 
  the 
  

   idea 
  first 
  came 
  to 
  him 
  of 
  making 
  a 
  machine 
  to 
  sew. 
  In 
  a 
  letter 
  to 
  a 
  

   friend 
  he 
  describes 
  his 
  poverty 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  and 
  the 
  difficulties 
  under 
  

   which 
  he 
  worked. 
  "I 
  was 
  in 
  needy 
  circumstances, 
  earning 
  but 
  httle 
  

   more 
  than 
  enough 
  to 
  board 
  and 
  clothe 
  me. 
  I 
  was 
  taken 
  sick 
  early 
  in 
  

   the 
  spring 
  of 
  1847, 
  with 
  fever 
  and 
  ague, 
  which 
  greatly 
  reduced 
  me; 
  

   I 
  have 
  never 
  fully 
  recovered 
  from 
  it." 
  

  

  Wilson 
  had 
  first 
  begun 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  a 
  needle 
  and 
  shuttle 
  

   machine, 
  but 
  instead 
  of 
  using 
  a 
  shuttle 
  pointed 
  at 
  one 
  end 
  and 
  moving 
  

   back 
  and 
  forth 
  in 
  a 
  straight 
  line, 
  as 
  had 
  both 
  Howe 
  and 
  Singer, 
  he 
  

   made 
  a 
  shuttle 
  pointed 
  at 
  both 
  ends 
  and 
  which 
  moved 
  in 
  a 
  curved 
  

   path, 
  forming 
  a 
  stitch 
  at 
  each 
  forward 
  and 
  backward 
  stroke. 
  Before 
  

   he 
  had 
  been 
  granted 
  this 
  patent 
  he 
  was 
  threatened 
  with 
  a 
  lawsuit 
  by 
  

   the 
  unscrupulous 
  owners 
  of 
  an 
  interest 
  in 
  another 
  machine 
  having 
  a 
  

   2-pointed 
  shuttle, 
  unless 
  he 
  would 
  convey 
  to 
  them 
  half 
  his 
  interest 
  

   in 
  his 
  patent 
  when 
  issued. 
  Having 
  no 
  money 
  to 
  defend 
  his 
  right, 
  

   and 
  his 
  partner, 
  Mr, 
  Chapin, 
  being 
  unwilling 
  to 
  advance 
  any 
  more, 
  

   he 
  consented 
  to 
  a 
  compromise. 
  About 
  this 
  time 
  Allen 
  Wilson 
  made 
  

   the 
  acquaintance 
  of 
  Nathaniel 
  Wheeler, 
  a 
  manufacturer 
  of 
  buckles 
  

   and 
  other 
  small 
  metal 
  wares 
  at 
  Watertown, 
  Conn. 
  Mr. 
  Wheeler 
  

   saw 
  Wilson's 
  sewing 
  machine 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  City, 
  and 
  made 
  a 
  contract 
  

   with 
  the 
  firm 
  controlling 
  the 
  patent 
  to 
  build 
  500 
  machines 
  for 
  them. 
  

   He 
  also 
  engaged 
  Wilson 
  to 
  go 
  with 
  him 
  to 
  Watertown 
  to 
  perfect 
  the 
  

   machine 
  and 
  superintend 
  its 
  manufacture. 
  In 
  the 
  meantime, 
  AUen 
  

  

  