Skip to main content

Search

Donate

Home Smithsonian Institution

Site Navigation

  • Visit
    • Hours and Locations
    • Entry and Guidelines
    • Mall Museum Map
    • Dining
    • Shopping
    • Accessibility
    • Group Visits
  • What's On
    • Exhibitions
      • Current Exhibitions
      • Upcoming
      • Past Exhibitions
      • Online Exhibitions
    • Today's Events
    • Online Events
    • All Events
    • IMAX & Planetarium
  • Explore
    • Art & Design
    • History & Culture
    • Science & Conservation
    • Collections
      • Open Access
      • Smithsonian Snapshot
    • Research Resources
      • Libraries
      • Archives
        • Smithsonian Institution Archives
        • Air and Space Museum
        • Anacostia Community Museum
        • American Art Museum
        • Archives of American Art
        • Archives of American Gardens
        • American History Museum
        • American Indian Museum
        • Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, African Art
        • Freer and Sackler Archives
        • Hirshhorn Archive
        • National Anthropological Archives
        • National Portrait Gallery
        • Ralph Rinzler Archives, Folklife
        • Libraries' Special Collections
    • Blogs
    • Podcasts
    • Mobile Apps
  • Learn
    • For Kids and Teens
    • For Educators
      • Resources
      • Field Trips
      • Professional Development
      • Events
    • Youth Programs
    • Fellowships and Internships
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
      • Behind-the-Scenes
      • Digital Volunteers
      • Smithsonian Call Center
      • Visitor Information Specialist
      • Docent Programs
    • Citizen Science
    • Work with Us
      • Office of Human Resources
        • Working Here
        • Employee Benefits
        • Job Opportunities
        • How to Apply
        • Job Seekers with Disabilities
        • Frequently Asked Questions
        • SI Civil Program
        • Contact Us
      • Affiliations
      • Global Partners
  • Support
    • About Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Your Membership
    • Make a Gift
  • About
    • Museums and Zoo
    • Research Centers
    • Cultural Centers
    • Education
    • Our Organization
      • Leadership
        • Secretary Bunch
        • Advancement
        • Communications
        • Administration
        • Education
        • Museums and Culture
        • Science and Research
      • Board of Regents
        • Members
        • Committees
        • Reading Room
        • Bylaws, Policies and Procedures
        • Contact
        • Schedules and Agendas
        • Meeting Minutes
        • Actions
        • Webcasts
      • General Counsel
        • Legal History
        • Internships
        • Records Requests
          • Records Request Reading Room
        • Tort Claim
        • Subpoenas & Testimonies
        • Events
      • Equal Employment Office
        • EEO Complaint Process
        • Individuals with Disabilities
        • Special Emphasis Program
        • Supplier Diversity Program
          • Doing Business with Us
          • Policies and Procedures
          • Additional Resources
          • Goals and Accomplishments
      • Sponsored Projects
        • Policies
          • Animal Care and Use
          • Human Research
        • Reports
        • Internships
    • Reports and Plans
      • Annual Reports
      • Metrics Dashboard
        • Dashboard Home
        • Virtual Smithsonian
        • Public Engagement
        • National Collections
        • Research
        • People & Operations
        • One Smithsonian
      • Strategic Plan
    • Newsdesk
      • News Releases
      • Media Contacts
      • Photos and Video
      • Media Kits
      • Fact Sheets
      • Visitor Stats
      • Secretary and Admin Bios
      • Filming Requests

1852 - Charles Miller's Patent Model of a Sewing Machine

National Museum of American History

Addthis Share Tools

    • Print

Object Details

inventor
Miller, Charles
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 9,139, issued July 20, 1852
Charles Miller of St. Louis, Missouri
At the time of his patent, Charles Miller lived in St. Louis, Missouri, an uncommon choice of residence for a sewing machine inventor. Most of the inventors, and subsequent manufacturers, were located in the northeastern United States, particularly New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
In his patent specification, Miller states: “This invention relates to that description of sewing-machine which forms the stitch by the interlacing of two threads, one of which is passed through the cloth in the form of a loop, and the other carried by a shuttle through the said loop.” His claim continues by stating: “It consists, first, in an improved stop-motion, or certain means of preventing the feed or movement of the cloth when by accident the thread breaks or catches in the seam; and, second, in certain means of sewing or making a stitch similar to what is termed in hand-sewing ‘the back stitch.”
According to Miller, his mechanism was different in that it passed the needle through the cloth in two places rather than in one, as was the case with other sewing machines of the time. His brass model is strikingly handsome, and engraved on the base of the model is “Charles Miller & J. A. Ross.” Usually when a second name is so prominently displayed on a model, it indicates a second inventor. However, no mention is made of Ross in the patent specification. Interestingly, Jonathan A. Ross turns up the following year at the 1853 New York Exhibition, exhibiting a sewing machine, and is listed in the catalogue as a sewing machine manufacturer from St. Louis, Missouri.
Miller is perhaps best known for an invention some two years later. It was the first sewing machine patented to stitch buttonholes (Patent No. 10,609, issued March 7, 1854). In his patent specification, Miller describes the three different stitches, “button-hole stitch, whip stitch or herring-bone stitch,” that can be mechanically sewn to finish the buttonhole.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1852-07-20
patent date
1852-07-20
ID Number
TE.T06113
catalog number
T06113.000
patent number
009139
accession number
89797
Object Name
sewing machine patent model
Object Type
Patent Model
Physical Description
brass (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 10 in x 8 in x 7 in; 25.4 cm x 20.32 cm x 17.78 cm
Related Publication
Janssen, Barbara Suit. Patent Models Index
Cooper, Grace Rogers. The Sewing Machine: Its Invention and Development
Related Web Publication
http://www.sil.si.edu/DigitalCollections/HST/Cooper/CF/view.cfm
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Textiles
Patent Models, Sewing Machines
Sewing Machines
Textiles
Patent Models
National Museum of American History
subject
Patent Models
Invention
Record ID
nmah_1070425
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a9-3522-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Related Content

  • Patent Models: Textile and Sewing Machines

    American History Museum
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Footer logo

Link to homepage

Footer navigation

  • Contact Us
  • Press Room
  • Human Resources
  • Host Your Event
  • Access Smithsonian
  • EEO & Supplier Diversity
  • Inspector General
  • Records Requests
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use

Social media links

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Email signup form

Email powered by BlackBaud (Privacy Policy, Terms of Use)
Back to Top