In 1862, a patented "compound rotary washing machine, with rollers for wringing or mangling" by Richard Lansdale of Pendleton, Manchester, was shown at the 1862 London Exhibition. It would not be until the 19th century that steam power would be used in washing machine designs. As metal drums started to replace the traditional wooden drums, it allowed for the drum to turn above an open fire or an enclosed fire chamber, raising the water temperature for more effective washes. While the technology was simple enough, it was a milestone in the history of washing machines, as it introduced the idea of "powered" washing drums. These early design patents consisted of a drum washer that was hand-cranked to make the wooden drums rotate. More advancements were made to washing machine technology in the form of the rotating drum design. This crude agitator technology was hand-powered, but still more effective than actually hand-washing the clothes. The person using the washer would use a stick to press and rotate the clothes along the textured sides of the basin or container, agitating the clothes to remove dirt and mud. One of the first innovations in washing machine technology was the use of enclosed containers or basins that had grooves, fingers, or paddles to help with the scrubbing and rubbing of the clothes. In 1782, Henry Sidgier issued a British patent for a rotating drum washer, and in the 1790s, Edward Beetham sold numerous "patent washing mills" in England. Jacob Christian Schäffer's washing machine design was published in 1767 in Germany. A drawing of an early washing machine appeared in the January 1752 issue of The Gentleman's Magazine, a British publication. The first English patent under the category of washing machines was issued in 1691. In a fulling mill, the cloth was beaten with wooden hammers, known as fulling stocks or fulling hammers. More so if one lived in space constrained housing such as an apartment.A fulling mill from Georg Andreas Böckler's Theatrum Machinarum Novum, 1661Īn early example of washing by machine is the practice of fulling. It was a variation of the many small washers that used manual labor meant for doing small loads such as lady's things, baby things, or perhaps a load of laundry such as a load of napkins, towels (woven not terry), one or two shirts/blouses, socks, etc. That tub and wringer "One Minute Washer" shown on Worthpoint originally came with a hand powered agitator. The washer was powered by a half-horsepower gasoline engine, which made the model a natural for the unelectrified farmlands of America." (Maytag bought out the other interests in Parsons and changed the company name in 1909) got around the problem by introducing the Multi-Motor model in 1914. The companies were successful but the main problem with the washers was that, except for the Automatic, they required human power, and even the Automatic was of limited use because electricity was still something of a novelty.īut the Maytag Co. In 1907, Fred Maytag started selling a washer, the Pastime, also based on the One Minute. Woodrow started the Automatic Washer Co., which sold a version of the One Minute that was powered by electricity. "The epidemic took the form of a severe case of copycat-itis.
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