"Jigsaw puzzle accessories Jigsaw puzzle accessories are the different accessories used by jigsaw puzzle enthusiasts in pursuit of their hobby. Jigsaw puzzles were made commercially available in England by John Spilsbury, around 1760 and have been widely accepted home entertainment in the UK ever since. Jigsaws enjoy similar popularity throughout Europe, and in the American Great Depression jigsaw puzzles sold at the rate of 10 million per week. It is perhaps therefore surprising that companies who produce games and puzzles have been slow to exploit the commercial opportunities afforded by so many enthusiasts who require something on which to construct"
"British cartographer John Spilsbury is generally credited with inventing the jigsaw puzzle or ""dissected map"" in 1766. He intended it to be an educational tool for geography. In ""Practical Education"" (1798), Maria Edgeworth and her father Richard Lovell Edgeworth described a ""rational toy-shop"" where educational toys would be sold. They proposed that such a shop should sell materials for a wide variety of activities including carpentry, handicrafts, gardening, chemistry, and natural history. An important advocate for the education of women, Maria Edgeworth's ideas about science and education were influenced by the philosopher, chemist, and educator Joseph Priestley and the exciting"
"a right to flourish and enjoy their childhood. The variety and number of toys that were manufactured during the 18th century steadily rose; John Spilsbury invented the first jigsaw puzzle in 1767 to help children learn geography. He created puzzles on eight themes – the World, Europe, Asia, Africa, America, England and Wales, Ireland and Scotland. The rocking horse (on bow rockers) was developed at the same time in England, especially with the wealthy as it was thought to develop children's balance for riding real horses. Blowing bubbles from leftover washing up soap became a popular pastime, as shown in"
"John Lethbridge John Lethbridge (1675–1759) invented the first underwater diving machine in 1715. He lived in the county of Devon in South West England and reportedly had 17 children. John Lethbridge was a wool merchant based in Newton Abbot who invented a diving machine in 1715 that was used to salvage valuables from wrecks. This machine was an airtight oak barrel that allowed “the diver” to submerge long enough to retrieve underwater material. In Lethbridge’s words: It is made of wainscot perfectly round, about 6 feet in length, about 2 feet and a half diameter at the head, and about"
"to keep the city dry--carried dirt either in handbaskets or the fronts of their long, tunic-like shirts. On the occasion of Peter's first visit to England, the young tsar and his traveling companions found a wheelbarrow in the garden of the house where they lodged; not knowing its purpose, they used it for drunken wheelbarrow races. In the 1970s, British inventor James Dyson introduced the Ballbarrow, an injection molded plastic wheelbarrow with a spherical ball on the front end instead of a wheel. Compared to a conventional design, the larger surface area of the ball made the wheelbarrow easier to"
"Grasshopper escapement The grasshopper escapement is a low-friction escapement for pendulum clocks invented by British clockmaker John Harrison around 1722. An escapement, part of every mechanical clock, is the mechanism that gives the clock's pendulum periodic pushes to keep it swinging, and each swing releases the clock's gears to move forward by a fixed amount, thus moving the hands forward at a steady rate. The grasshopper escapement was used in a few regulator clocks built during Harrison's time, and a few others over the years, but has never seen wide use. The term ""grasshopper"" in this connection, apparently from the"
"jaspers on display in his rooms at any given time. After passing on his company to his sons, Wedgwood died at home, probably of cancer of the jaw, in 1795. He was buried three days later in the parish church of Stoke-on-Trent. Seven years later a marble memorial tablet commissioned by his sons was installed there. One of the wealthiest entrepreneurs of the 18th century, Wedgwood created goods to meet the demands of the consumer revolution and growth in wealth of the middle classes that helped drive the Industrial Revolution in Britain. He is credited as the inventor of modern"
"along. Puzzle makers are people who make puzzles. Some notable creators of puzzles are: Jigsaw puzzles are perhaps the most popular form of puzzle. Jigsaw puzzles were invented around 1760, when John Spilsbury, a British engraver and cartographer, mounted a map on a sheet of wood, which he then sawed around the outline of each individual country on the map. He then used the resulting pieces as an aid for the teaching of geography. After becoming popular among the public, this kind of teaching aid remained the primary use of jigsaw puzzles until about 1820. The largest puzzle (40,320 pieces)"
"Jonathan Spilsbury Jonathan Spilsbury (1737?–1812) was an English engraver, the brother of John Spilsbury, with whom he has sometimes been confused, and father of Maria Spilsbury. Spilsbury practised chiefly in mezzotint, and between 1759 and 1789 produced many plates, mainly portraits, which included: He also engraved subject-pieces after Murillo, Rembrandt, Rubens, Metzu, Angelica Kauffman, and others For his print of Miss Jacob, Spilsbury was awarded a premium by the Society of Arts in 1761, and for that of the Earl of Carlisle another in 1763. He exhibited original portraits and biblical compositions with the Society of Artists of Great Britain"
"out of wood-grained metal sheets. In 1917, the Ohio Art Company began manufacturing toys such as the windmills and climbing monkey. After World War I, the toy company grew exponentially, leading to the introduction of colorful tea sets and drums. In the late 1950s, a French electrician named André Cassagnes created a drawing toy that used a joystick, glass and aluminum powder. The combination, which he called the ""Telecran"", gave users the ability to draw a picture and also erase it. After much collaboration with many individuals, the system they developed in the late 1950s is the same one used"
"man of many skills and he used these to systematically improve the performance of the pendulum clock. He invented the gridiron pendulum, consisting of alternating brass and iron rods assembled so that the thermal expansions and contractions essentially cancel each other out. Another example of his inventive genius was the grasshopper escapement – a control device for the step-by-step release of a clock's driving power. Developed from the anchor escapement, it was almost frictionless, requiring no lubrication because the pallets were made from wood. This was an important advantage at a time when lubricants and their degradation were little understood."
"in the County of London and the Home Counties from 1905 to 1932. The hand-written cards, discovered in a lost cabinet, were the notes that Spilsbury apparently accumulated for a textbook on forensic medicine which he was planning, but there is no evidence that he ever started the book. It was Spilsbury who, together with personnel from Scotland Yard, was responsible for devising the so-called murder bag, the kit containing plastic gloves, tweezers, evidence bags, etc., that detectives attending the scene of a suspicious death are now equipped with. Spilsbury is commemorated by an English Heritage blue plaque attached to"
"Slinky A Slinky is a toy precompressed helical spring invented by Richard James in the early 1940s. It can perform a number of tricks, including travelling down a flight of steps end-over-end as it stretches and re-forms itself with the aid of gravity and its own momentum, or appear to levitate for a period of time after it has been dropped. These interesting characteristics have contributed to its success as a toy in its home country of the United States, resulting in many popular toys with slinky components in a wide range of countries. The Slinky was invented and developed"
"a mathematical instrument maker (working with Henry Hindley), developing, among other instruments, a pyrometer to study material expansion and a whirling speculum or horizontal top (a maritime navigation aid). In 1750, his premises were in the Great Turnstile in Holborn. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1753, and in 1759 won the Copley Medal for his research into the mechanics of waterwheels and windmills. His 1759 paper ""An Experimental Enquiry Concerning the Natural Powers of Water and Wind to Turn Mills and Other Machines Depending on Circular Motion""<ref name=""Phil. Trans. 1759 51:100-174; doi:10.1098/rstl.1759.0019""></ref> addressed the relationship"
"Company. As a result of his making instruments for Capt. Phipps's voyage in the polar regions, the island of Cummingøya in Svalbard was named after him. Alexander Cumming Alexhander Cumming (sometimes referred to as Alexander Cummings) FRSE (1733 –8 March 1814) was a Scottish watchmaker and instrument inventor, who was the first to patent a design of the flush toilet, which had been pioneered by Sir John Harrington, but without solving the problem of foul smells. The S-trap (or bend) was invented by Cumming in 1775 to retain water permanently within the bowl, thus preventing sewer gases from entering buildings."
"assist jigsaw puzzle enthusiasts. The engraver and cartographer John Spilsbury, of London, is believed to have produced the first jigsaw puzzle around 1760, using a marquetry saw. Early jigsaws, known as dissections, were produced by mounting maps on sheets of hardwood and cutting along national boundaries, creating a puzzle useful for the teaching of geography. Such ""dissected maps"" were used to teach the children of King George III and Queen Charlotte by royal governess Lady Charlotte Finch. The name ""jigsaw"" came to be associated with the puzzle around 1880 when fretsaws became the tool of choice for cutting the shapes."
"were used for decoration or as planters, being air tight. Latrobe Stove The Latrobe Stove, also known as a ""Baltimore Heater"", was a coal-fired parlor heater made of cast iron and fitted into fireplaces as an insert. They were patented in 1846 and were very popular by the 1870s. The squat device was invented by John Hazelhurst Boneval Latrobe (1803–1891). He was the son of noted engineer and architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe II. Latrobe became a patent lawyer and was shy about taking credit for his stoves which succeeded Benjamin Franklin's much larger Franklin stove. In 1980 there were a"
"Gridiron pendulum The gridiron pendulum was a temperature-compensated clock pendulum invented by British clockmaker John Harrison around 1726 and later modified by John Ellicott. It was used in precision clocks. In ordinary clock pendulums, the pendulum rod expands and contracts with changes in temperature. The period of the pendulum's swing depends on its length, so a pendulum clock's rate varied with changes in ambient temperature, causing inaccurate timekeeping. The gridiron pendulum consists of alternating parallel rods of two metals with different thermal expansion coefficients, such as steel and brass. The rods are connected by a frame in such a way"
"between the balance wheel and the escape wheel; this is the form used in modern watches. In 1867 Georges Frederic Roskopf invented an inexpensive, less accurate form called the Roskopf or pin-pallet escapement, which was used in cheap ""dollar watches"" in the early 20th century and is still used in cheap alarm clocks and kitchen timers. A rare but interesting mechanical escapement is John Harrison's grasshopper escapement invented in 1722. In this escapement, the pendulum is driven by two hinged arms (pallets). As the pendulum swings, the end of one arm catches on the escape wheel and drives it slightly"
"Lewis's invention was later developed and improved by Richard Arkwright in his water frame and Samuel Crompton in his spinning mule. In 1764 in the village of Stanhill, Lancashire, James Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny, which he patented in 1770. It was the first practical spinning frame with multiple spindles. The jenny worked in a similar manner to the spinning wheel, by first clamping down on the fibres, then by drawing them out, followed by twisting. It was a simple, wooden framed machine that only cost about £6 for a 40-spindle model in 1792, and was used mainly by home"
"pig's bladders. Lindon also won medals for the invention of the ""Rubber inflatable Bladder"" and the ""Brass Hand Pump"". In 1855, the U.S. inventor Charles Goodyear – who had patented vulcanised rubber – exhibited a spherical football, with an exterior of vulcanised rubber panels, at the Paris ""Exhibition Universelle"". The ball was to prove popular in early forms of football in the U.S.A. The iconic ball with a regular pattern of hexagons and pentagons (see truncated icosahedron) did not become popular until the 1960s, and was first used in the World Cup in 1970. The earliest reference to a game"
"Similar designs are used on many people's front doors today. Philip Thicknesse wrote in ""The Gentleman's Magazine"" in 1785: Humphrey Gainsborough Reverend Humphrey Gainsborough (1718 – 23 August 1776) was an English non-conformist minister, engineer, and inventor. Humphrey Gainsborough was pastor to the Independent Church in Henley-on-Thames, England. He was the brother of the artist Thomas Gainsborough. He invented the drill plough (1766), winning a prize of £60 from the Royal Society for his efforts. He also invented the tide mill (1761), which allowed a mill wheel to rotate in either direction, winning a £50 prize from the Society for"
"James Hargreaves James Hargreaves (c. 1720 – 22 April 1778) was a weaver, carpenter and inventor in Lancashire, England. He was one of three inventors responsible for mechanising spinning. Hargreaves is credited with inventing the spinning jenny in 1764, Richard Arkwright patented the water frame in 1769, and Samuel Crompton combined the two creating the spinning mule in 1779. James Hargreaves was born at Stanhill, Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire. He was described as ""stout, broadest man of about five-foot ten, or rather more"". He was illiterate and worked as a hand loom weaver during most of his life. He married and"
"with a small kerosene heater. Crosley's company sold several hundred thousand Icyball units before discontinuing its manufacture in the late 1930s. In 1932 Crosley had the idea of putting shelves in the doors of refrigerators. He patented the ""Shelvador"" refrigerator and launched the new appliance in 1933. At that time it was the only model with shelves in the door. In addition to refrigerators, Crosley's company sold other consumer products that included the ""XERVAC,"" a device purported to ""revitalize inactive hair cells"" and ""stimulate hair growth"". Crosley also introduced the ""Autogym,"" a motor-driven weight-loss device with a vibrating belt, and"
"Spirograph Spirograph is a geometric drawing toy that produces mathematical roulette curves of the variety technically known as hypotrochoids and epitrochoids. It was developed by British engineer Denys Fisher and first sold in 1965. The name has been a registered trademark of Hasbro Inc. since 1998 following purchase of the company that had acquired the Denys Fisher company. The Spirograph brand was relaunched worldwide with original product configurations in 2013 by Kahootz Toys. In 1827 English architect and engineer Peter Hubert Desvignes developed his ""Speiragraph"", a machine to create elaborate spiral drawings, intended to prevent bank note forgeries. The mathematician"
"Alan Bloom Alan Herbert Vauser Bloom (19 November 1906 – 31 March 2005) was a British horticulturist and steam engine enthusiast. During his life he created over 170 new varieties of hardy perennial plants. These and Alpine plants and conifers were his specialities. He invented the garden feature of freestanding island beds, set in open lawn. He wrote some 30 books and appeared on radio and television. He was the founder of Bressingham Steam and Gardens in Norfolk, England. Alan Bloom was the son of a market gardener at Over, Cambridgeshire. Aged seventeen he left school and learned his craft"
"the painting ""The Soap Bubble"" (1739) by Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin. Other popular toys included hoops, toy wagons, kites, spinning wheels and puppets. The first board games were produced by John Jefferys in the 1750s, including ""A Journey Through Europe"". The game was very similar to modern board games; players moved along a track with the throw of a dice (a teetotum was actually used) and landing on different spaces would either help or hinder the player. In the nineteenth century, the emphasis was put on toys that had an educational purpose to them, such as puzzles, books, cards and board games."
"physician Abraham O. Stansbury in England. It was based on earlier Egyptian locks and Joseph Bramah's tubular pin tumbler lock. Two years later, Stansbury was granted a patent in the United States for his lock. In 1848, Linus Yale, Sr. invented the modern pin-tumbler lock. In 1861, Linus Yale, Jr. was inspired by the original 1840s pin-tumbler lock designed by his father, thus inventing and patenting a smaller flat key with serrated edges as well as pins of varying lengths within the lock itself, the same design of the pin-tumbler lock in use today. The pin tumbler is commonly used"
"but is less popular today. The remnants of spray-painted skully boards may be found on some streets and school yards. At Bronx House Emanuel Summer Camp an over-sized skully board was painted on the basketball court and the game was played with shuffleboard equipment. It is said that the game has existed as long as the crown-rimmed bottle cap, which was invented in 1892. Reference to the game has been made in the ""New York Times"" in August 1920, and again in July 1950. Jean-Michel Basquiat made several paintings in 1980 to 1982 featuring the skully board, remembering playing the"
"their own design and nurtured their own designers but equally they would construct furniture for designers without production capacity. He did works for Chippendale, Sheraton and Hepplewhite. In the 1760s Gillows began producing billiard tables. They have even been credited with inventing the billiard table, although billiards had been played for a long time before the 1760s. They are also credited with patenting the ""telescopic"" (extendable) dining table and building the first Davenport desk. By 1900, the firm was producing a complete interior decoration service but this strained the company's finances - and it was taken over by Waring of"
"Mrs. Edward Hirst of Sydney invented the combination polo and lacrosse sport which was first played at Ingleburn near Sydney in 1939. 1940 – Zinc Cream – This white sun block made from zinc oxide was developed by the Fauldings pharmaceutical company. 1943 – Splayd – The combination of knife, fork and spoon was invented by William McArthur after seeing ladies struggle to eat at barbecues with standard cutlery from plates on their laps. 1945 – Hills Hoist – The famous Hills Hoist rotary clothes line with a winding mechanism allowing the frame to be lowered and raised with ease"
"for George III which also acted as a barometer, recording air pressure against time. This is notable as the first accurate recording barograph. In 1766 he made a similar model for his personal use, which on his death was purchased by Luke Howard who used it for his observations within the book ""The Climate of London"". In 1770 he is credited with the invention of the microtome, a machine for making extremely thin slices as used in slide-preparation, in conjunction with John Hill. In 1775 he made the major advance on the design of the flushing toilet by adding the"
"built in 1763 at Park Place close to Henley, an interesting rustic arched stone structure that still carries traffic on the road between Wargrave and Henley today. In 1768, he improved the slope on the road up the steep White Hill to the east of Henley, straightening it in the process. In the 1760s, Gainsborough showed a model of a condensing steam engine to James Watt. Watt had been working independently on improvements to the Newcomen ""atmospheric engine"" and subsequently patented these in 1769. He perhaps included some of – and at least built on – Gainsborough's ideas. Gainsborough is"