Washing Machine with Churn: One Crank Pounds the Wash, Turns the Tub and Works a Dash Churn (Wagoner & Severson, 1859)

"In addition to what has now been described our machine is adapted to operate a churn very effectively either alone or simultaneously with the washing operation." "We place the center of our tube J out of the plane of the motion of the levers T and V. Our pounder therefore inclines to strike on one side of J and not in the center thereby increasing the uniformity of the effect on the contents."

From 70 x 70 mm timber cut three stringers 1500 mm, two cross pieces 630 mm, four legs 700 mm, an upright 830 mm and an upright 720 mm. Bolt the cross pieces across the tops of the legs and the stringers on the cross pieces, 210 mm apart, so the frame's top is 840 mm from the floor. Bolt the long upright to the outside of the front stringer 100 mm from the left end and the short one 100 mm from the right end. Chisel an opening 50 x 260 mm through the left upright, from 440 to 700 mm above the stringer, and bore it across 560 mm up for pin v (a 16 mm bolt).

Bolt three bearing blocks on the stringers' tops 650 mm from the left end and pass a 30 mm steel shaft D through them, 710 mm long. Build the balance wheel from three layers of 20 mm hardwood segments glued crossways: 840 mm across, a 100 mm rim and four spokes, 50 mm thick in all. Fit it on D between the front and middle stringers, the printed pulley between the middle and back stringers, and a hand crank 240 mm long on the back end. On the front end fit crank E, a hardwood arm 20 mm thick with a slot from 50 to 125 mm out, and a 20 mm bolt in the slot for the crank pin e.

Cut lever T from hardwood 40 x 70 mm, 1195 mm long. Bolt it to the front of the right upright, 610 mm above the stringer, free to rock. Join it to the crank pin by link U, hardwood 20 x 40 mm with its pin holes 560 mm apart, 715 mm from T's pivot. At T's left end join rod V, hardwood 30 x 40 mm, slotted 22 mm wide for 220 mm, and pass it through the left upright's opening astride pin v. Fix a steel pin 3, 24 mm and 370 mm long, through T 1015 mm from its pivot, sticking out at the front for the churn.

Cut the spring beam W from ash 30 x 40 mm, 1210 mm long. Lay it on T's top, its left end against a block glued on T, bolt it through T 415 mm left of the pivot with a wing nut (the hand nut w), and let it run past the upright to overhang the frame by 510 mm. Make rod X from hardwood 40 x 40 mm, 1090 mm long, with four holes at its top for height. Under it glue a hardwood head 200 x 120 mm with five legs 30 x 36 mm, 160 mm long, each slotted (Z) and bored across (z). Hang X from W's end on a bolt so it swings freely, in front of W.

Make platform M from 40 mm hardwood, 860 x 860 mm, and hang it on two strap hinges (the butts m) at the feet of the right-hand legs. On M, 100 mm from the hinges, fit a 20 mm vertical shaft in a flange bearing with pulley R and the lower bevel wheel on it. In a hardwood post fit a 20 mm cross shaft with the upper bevel wheel and a 240 mm hardwood pulley P in line with the pulley on D. 480 mm from the hinges, 340 mm towards the front, set a 24 mm shaft L in a hardwood block that slides in a slot along M, with a compression spring pushing it away from R. Glue platform K, 660 mm across and 40 mm thick, bore it for L, and set four 40 mm hardwood wheels l under its edge.

Put belt S round pulley R and platform K's rim. Fold M up against the frame, run a string round the pulley on D and pulley P, and choose belt O just short enough that, with M let down and empty, it holds M at a slight angle; "The belt O is sufficiently short to hold the platform M at a slight angle until the weight of J is added thereto." Set the wooden tub J on K: its weight should pull M flat and the belt tight. Oil the wood.

Put warm water, soap and the clothes in the tub, and set the pounder's height so its feet clear the tub's bottom by the clothes. Turn the hand crank steadily. The pounder rises and falls on one side of the tub while the tub turns under it, so every part of the wash comes under it in turn. Move the crank pin out in its slot for a longer stroke, in for a shorter one. Lift the clothes out to rinse and wring.

Make the dash 2: a hardwood rod 35 mm across, 1250 mm long, bored at the top to hang on pin 3, with two crossed blades 220 x 30 x 20 mm at the bottom. Stand the churn under pin 3, beside the machine, pour in about 10 litres of cream at about 15 °C (checked with the thermometer), a third of its height, pass the dash through the lid and hang it on pin 3. Turn the crank, with or without the wash, timing it. When the butter comes, lift the dash off the pin, drain the buttermilk, wash the butter in cold water, salt and weigh it.

**John Wagoner and Abram Severson, Jr.** of Guilderland Center, New York, US 25,152, 16 August 1859, "Washing-Machine". They claimed mounting the platform K and the pulleys and gearing P Q R on the hinged platform M, so turning M up slackens belt O and turning it down lets the tub's weight tighten it. The patent gives no sizes; every size here is ours. Their hand lever H and rod I, a second way to turn D, are not built: we turn D by a crank, which the patent allows. The spring that urges K's centre against belt S is "not represented" in their drawing; ours is a compression spring in a slot.