Patented & Distinctive Bit Braces

Quimby Backus No.8 brace - Patented November 5, 1872.

This little brace bears the patent date, Nov. 5, 1872 (US Patent No. 132,791).  However, even though the inventor's residence was Millers Falls, Massachusetts at the time the patent was granted, by the time this example was made, the Backus firm had taken up residence in Holyoke, Massachusetts, probably around 1878. That makes this brace about 130 years old ! The makers mark on the chuck is quite indistinct, so I boosted contrast and brightness, converted to greyscale, and then inverted to a negative image.  It is now possible to see the Nov. 5, 1872 date as well as the Holyoke, Mass. company location.

The wrist handle appears to follow the patent drawing, but all that may be intended is for the reader of the patent actually to make the invention, as the law requires. The brace appears to be the No.8 size. The chuck follows the patent drawing exactly. The actual patent claim only applies to the jaws, although the handle is indeed mentioned in passing.  The pad isn't mentioned in the claim ... And that's the part on this particular brace that's too tight to turn. Note that the witnesses to the drawing (Henry A. Miller and C.L. Evert) aren't the same as the witnesses to Mr. Quimby's signature, A.N. Marr and Edm. F. Brown. I can't decipher the attorney's hand.