Inventors & Inventions

"To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."
--The United States Constitution, Article I, Section 8, Clause 8

After the English colonists in North America invented a new nation, their leaders sought to encourage innovation and discovery by creating in 1790 the Federal Patent Act, signed by President George Washington. The first patent examiner was Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. The individual states at first resisted federal control, and the requirement that all patent applicants appear in person slowed the system. The 1790 act was repealed, and another was enacted in 1793. Applicants submitted a description, drawings, a sworn statement that their inventions were original, and a thirty-dollar fee. By 1839, the federal government had created the United States Patent Office to handle the great numbers of applications being filed.

As one would expect, the patents awarded to Vienna residents are inventions of their respective era. The earliest available Vienna patents, awarded in the decade after the Civil War, describe improvements to household work (washing machine) and to farming (harvester-cutter grinder). Vienna's coal era is represented by Morgan H. Evans's patent for an improved coal-drilling machine. And the rise of the automobile manufacturing industry in the region in the twentieth century is chronicled through the great number of patents created for General Motors (with an assembly plant located in Lordstown, Trumbull County, Ohio).

Thanks to Google's patent search engine, inventions created and patented by residents of Vienna Township may be very easily found. Vienna's role in the history of technology and the history of the nation may be seen through these historic patent applications, presented in chronological order by year. All current patent applications are excluded until approved.

All links open in a new browser window; documents are in PDF format. Patents obtained by more than one person are noted as a "group patent" with the Vienna resident's name listed for easy reference, even though that resident's name may not have appeared first in the patent application.

1866-1900
Sanford, N. M., Improved Washing Machine, 1866
Barker, Joseph P. , Improvement in Harvester-Cutter Grinder, 1871
Evans, Morgan H., Improvement in Coal-Drilling Machines, 1874

1901-1950
Everett, William F., Attachment for Anvils, 1910
Buckley, Duer H., Steering-Gear Connection, 1911
Buckley, Duer H., Automatic Bottle Locker, 1915
Buckley, Duer H., Steering Device for Automobiles, 1915
Schadt, Albert M., and Merle Griffis, Scattering-Unloader, 1920
Nolan, James C., Paint, 1920
Griffis, Merle L., Holder for Yarn or Cord, 1940
Buckley, Duer H., Stepladder, 1950

1951-1970
Buckley, Duer H., Cap for Soil Pipe Clean-Outs, 1957
McMullen, James W., Ring Mill, 1960
Somlitz, Arthur A., Rip Cord Handle Guard for Chest Types of Parachutes, 1964
Parker, Delbert R., Lightning Arrester, 1965
Parker, Delbert R., Expulsion Lightning Arrester, 1966
Parker, Delbert R., Magnetic Drive Lightning Arrester, 1968
Lay, Norman W., Rural Mailbox Signals, 1969
Duncan, Norman D., Molding Compositions Comprising Isotactic Polypropylene Blend, Filler and Metallic Soap, 1969
Gibbs, Winfield D. (group patent), Automatic Drinking Glass Washer, 1970
Drescher, Warren F., Dolly System, 1973
Lofaro, Sante D., Cut Off Plate for Curbing Machines, 1974
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Printed Circuit Connector Terminal, 1975
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Weather Sealed Lamp Socket Assembly, 1976
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Female Terminal, 1976
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Matable Electrical Connector Means with Inertia Lock, 1977
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Locking Shield for Electrical Terminal, 1979
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Electrical Terminal with Anti-Tangle Tangs, 1979
Plyler, Robert G. (group patent), Pin Type Electrical Contact Terminal, 1979

1971-2000

Updated 11/25/2020