The Fountain Pen Patent Archive

The instruments that put ink under pressure

Ink reservoir

Patent drawing sheet showing a hinged rectangular writing-guide frame with glass panel, a spherical sponge holder, a cylindrical roller drier, and several quill and metallic fountain pens with folded sheath plates and nibs.ART OF WRITING BY A CONSTRUCTION OF FOUNTAIN-PEN ADAPTED TO WRITING ON A GUIDE FORMED OF GROUND GLASS, &c.William Davison · October 9, 1841Three line drawings of a metal dip pen: a top view showing a bent-over spring tab forming an ink reservoir near the split nib, an unfolded version of the same pen blank with the tab still projecting outward, and a side profile view of the finished pen showing its slight upward curve.METALLIC PENMyer Phineas · February 5, 1856Patent drawing of an early fountain pen showing a long tapered tube with a cap and internal rod at top, an ink reservoir plate and nib at the bottom, with two small detail views of the piston's underside labeled Fig. 2 and Fig. 3.FOUNTAIN-PENA. F. Warren and C. M. H. Warren · March 11, 1856Patent drawing of a cylindrical fountain pen with a slitted tapering metal point, showing an assembled outside view, an end view, a cross-section revealing an internal ink reservoir and cap, and a detached tube with the point spread open into separate nibs.FOUNTAIN-PENNelson B. Slayton · August 26, 1856Technical patent drawing of a dip pen with an ink reservoir attachment clasped to its underside, shown in full assembled view (Fig. 1) and in several detail cross-sections of the nib, valves, and clasping sides (Figs. 2-9).FOUNTAIN-PENG. W. Woolley · December 4, 1860Patent drawing of a 19th-century fountain pen showing an elevation view and two cross-sections revealing an internal ink reservoir, hinged nib disk, rod, and air-cushion valve mechanism.FOUNTAIN-PENGeorge Rudolph Metten · October 9, 1866Patent drawing showing a pen nib with an attached perforated metal ink reservoir, including a top view, a cross-section, and a plan view of the detached reservoir.IMPROVEMENT IN PENSE. L. Pratt · February 18, 1868Two line drawings of a pen nib: Fig. 1 shows a side section of the pen with a curved hinged flap along its concave underside, and Fig. 2 shows an inner view of the nib with the flap labeled B, pivot points marked c and c, and the nib point marked b.IMPROVEMENT IN PENS.Robert Hirst · March 24, 1868Patent drawing showing five small views (A through E) of a metal pen-fountain device: elongated tapered tongue pieces with perforated, dotted textured surfaces labeled with letters a, b, c, e, f, illustrating front, rear, side, bottom, and top views of the fountain clasped around a pen nib and shank.IMPROVEMENT IN PENS.E. L. Pratt · May 11, 1869Patent drawing showing a pen nib in Fig. 1 with notches labeled B B, Fig. 2 showing the same nib fitted with a rubber ring N and ink channel D, and Fig. 4 showing a small half-moon shaped rubber ring labeled N.IMPROVEMENT IN PENSD. D. Foley · January 18, 1870Line drawing of a dip pen holder with a nib and a small curved metal ink-retaining attachment shown both installed and removed, labeled with letters A, B, C, C1, and C2.IMPROVEMENT IN FOUNTAIN-PENSWilliam H. Sprague · October 31, 1876Patent drawing showing six figures of a fountain pen holder, including a longitudinal cross-section revealing an internal ink reservoir, elastic rubber chamber, connecting rod, curved ink delivery tube to the nib, a plunger with hooked wire for filling, and a protective cap for the pen point.IMPROVEMENT IN FOUNTAIN-PENSHenri Berlie and François X. Lamboley · May 1, 1877Patent drawing of a Victorian-era fountain pen showing the barrel, sliding tubes, internal valve mechanism, nib assembly, and a curved metal fountain attachment clipped beneath the pen point, with cross-sectional detail views of the pump and valve components.IMPROVEMENT IN FOUNTAIN-PENSGeorge Wells · May 27, 1879Patent drawing of a fountain stylus pen showing three longitudinal cross-sections labeled Fig. 1, Fig. 2, and Fig. 3, each revealing an internal ink reservoir, condensing chamber, spring mechanism, and a fine pointed stylus tip enclosed in a jacket.FOUNTAIN STYLUS-PEN.William W. Stewart · January 8, 1884Patent drawing of a 19th-century fountain pen shown in cross-section (Fig. I) with labeled parts a, b, c, d, i, j, k, l, m, an enlarged detail of the plug and tip (Fig. II), and a cross-sectional end view of the collar (Fig. 3).FOUNTAIN-PEN.Noyes F. Palmer · March 9, 1886Patent drawing of a fountain pen attachment showing a spiral coil-shaped ink reservoir wrapped around the pen shaft near the nib, secured by a collar labeled B, with a detailed close-up of the perforated coil in Figure 3.FOUNTAIN-PENAndrew M. Fox · August 27, 1889Patent drawing showing six figures of a hinged drafting ruling pen with adjustable blades, a spiral ink reservoir attachment, and a hand dipping the pen into an ink bottle.DRAWING-PENOscar F. Grant · July 19, 1892Patent drawing showing a tapered fountain penholder in side and sectional views, with a detailed close-up of the tubular feeder featuring a slotted tongue and a cross-section of the pen tip assembly.PENHOLDER.James Martin, Joseph McCarty, Thomas Craft · March 17, 1896Patent drawing showing a hand writing with a dip pen above four detailed close-up views of the pen-point nib labeled A through F, illustrating a rolled metal tongue forming a small ink reservoir near the tip.PEN.William T. Keefer · March 23, 1897