US952614A - Coin and letter holder for rural mail-boxes. - Google Patents

Description

A. H. GRIFFIN & W. A. KIRKSEY.

00m AND LETTER HOLDER FOR RURAL MAIL BOXES.

APPLICATION FIL ED JUNE 15, 1909. 1

Patented Mar. 22, 1910.

a, lmwntovs '7 4 I/Witness tantra eras ATET er ALVAH H. GRIFFIN AND WALTER A. KIRKSEY, OF LINCOLN, ALABAMA.

COIN AND LETTER HOLDER FOR RURAL MAIL-BOXES.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALVAI-I H. GRIFFIN and lVALTER A. KIRKSEY, citizens of the United States, residing at Lincoln, in the county of Talladega and State of Alabama, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coin and Letter Holders for Rural Mail-Boxes, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention is a device for holding coins, stamps and letters and adapted for use in rural free delivery mail boxes.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple and practical device of this character which is so constructed that it may be readily picked up by the mail carrier, thereby enabling him to simultaneously remove the letters and money from the box and obviating the necessity of picking each piece up separately.

\Vith the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel features of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed and illustrated in the accon'ipanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved coin and letter holder; Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the same; and Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view.

The invention comprises a body 1 which has a receptacle 2 in which coins, or other money, may be placed and an enlarged base portion 3 provided with a spring clip 4 be neath which letters may be held. The body 1 may be made of any material and of any size and shape but it is preferably made of metal and of such size as to be placed in the ordinary rural delivery mail box. In shape it preferably resembles a goblet or cup and the receptacle 2 is disposed at its top and connected to the large base 3 by a reduced portion or neck '3. The receptacle 2 with the reduced portion or neck 5 beneath the same provides a convenient means to enable the holder to be readily picked up and inverted to remove the contents of the receptacle 2 and also to remove the letters or the mail matter from beneath the clip 4-. In picking up the device or holder, the palm of the hand is placed over the open top of the receptacle 2 so that when the device is inverted the coins in said holder will drop into the hand and the letters under the spring clip may be easily removed by the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 15, 1909.

Patented ltllar. 22, 1910. Serial No. 502,387.

other hand. The enlarged base 3 provides a substantial support to prevent the holder from tilting over when in the mail box and it also enables a number of letters to be held beneath the several portions of the spring at.

The spring clip a is preferably form-ed from a single piece of resilient wire bent back and forward upon itself to provide several oppositely projecting spring loops 6 and its ends are bent against the bottom edge of the base 3 and may be secured thereto by rolling said bottom edge of the base over the ends of the wire as shown at- 7 or in any other suitable manner. As illustrated in Fig. 3, said wire is bent upon itself at its center to provide a central loop which projects beyond the edge of the enlarged base 3, and it is also bent to provide two side loops. By providing several spring loops or arms 6 it will be seen that a plurality of letters may be held beneath the clip.

A bottom 8 for the receptacle 2 may be placed at any point within the body 1 so that said receptacle may be shallow or deep as may be desired.

In using the invention the owner of the mail box places any letters which he desires to be collected beneath the clip on the base of the device and, if he desires to purchase stamps, he places the money for the same in the coin receptacle 2. hen the mail carrier reaches the box lie-merely picks up the holder by the receptacle 2 and inverts it to remove the coins from the receptacle 2 and the letters from beneath the clip 4.

The use of the device, it will be seen, obviates the necessity of the carrier picking each letter or coin up separately from the bottom of the box which is very troublesome especially in cold weather when the carrier wears gloves.

The use of the device precludes the possibility of letters, cards, coins, etc, sticking close to the bottom or sides of the box and being left there by the carrier.

It will be noted that the device is simple in construction so that it may be made at a small cost and will be strong and durable in use.

Vhile the preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail, it will be seen that various changes in form. proportion and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction may be resorted to Within the spirit and scope of the invention. 7

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed is:

1. A device of the character described comprising a body having at its top a cupshaped coin receptacle, at its bottom an enlarged circular sheet metal base, and intermediate its top and bottom a reduced connecting portion uniting said receptacle and base, and a spring clip formed from a single piece of Wire bent upon itself at its center to provide a central loop to project beyond one edge of said base, said Wire being further bent to provide side loops and having its extremities curved longitudinally, the edge of said enlarged base being bent around said-curved extremities of the Wire to unite the clip to the base.

2. A device of the character described comprising a body member constructed of sheet metal and having an enlarged circular base, and a spring clip formed from a single piece of Wire bent upon itself at its center to provide a central loop to project beyond one edge of said base, said Wire being further bent to provide side loops and having its extremities curved longitudinally, the edge of the enlarged base portion of the body member being bent around said curved extremities of the Wire to unite the clip to said base.

In testimony whereof We hereunto ZlffiX our signatures in the presence of tWo Witnesses.

ALVAH H. GRIFFIN.

WVALTER A. KIRKSEY.

Witnesses:

WV. T. CASTLEBERG, J. C. KoLLINesWoR'rH.

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