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Posted 4 years ago
knutte1
(76 items)
This 5.25 inch tall flashlight is marked W.B 701 (Weidlick Bros. Mfg. Co) Patent Appl'd For
It holds 2 C batteries. I believe it dates back to 1915.
I have seen a listing in Bronze but this one appears to be silver but not labeled as such.
Any information appreciated
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knutte1, Cool. :-)
Here's the one in bronze:
*snip*
Weidlick Bros. W.B. Mfg. Co. battery candle style flashlight no. 701. This Candle is marked "Patent Appl'd For" which indicates it is an early example - later examples are Patent dated Sept. 7, 1915. Measures 6" tall with a handle for carrying, and made of Bronze. Takes 2C Batteries.
*snip*
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-1915-bronze-wb-mfg-co-candle-495418440
Here's another silver-plated one:
*snip*
Early example of a battery operated electric candle lamp by Weidlich Brothers Manufacturing of Bridgeport, Conn. On the bottom of the lamp shows the Weidlich Brothers logo and the number "700" along with a patent date of September 7, 1915. The original patent number 1,152,158 shows this patent was for the "Electric Switch" at the top of the lamp.
*snip*
https://www.ebay.com/itm/233954084477
FYI, that patent number didn't work for me (it was for a lifeboat).
About the Weidlich Bros:
*snip*
Weidlich Brothers Manufacturing Company operated in Bridgeport. Connecticut from 1901 until the 1950s. The brothers were Louis, Frank, and William. They produced a wide variety of art metal ware much of which was silver-plated. The two principle designers at Weidlich were Louis Weidlich and Alfred J. Flauder. Between 1907 and 1933. Louis was granted more than a dozen design patents including jewelry cases, cigarette dispensers, an inkwell and pin cushion combination, an incense burner, a salt shaker, a table crumber and an electric perfumer.
*snip*
https://vatican.com/Other-Weidlich-Bros/
One of the brothers came to an unhappy end:
*snip*
Bridgeport, Conn., Jan. 26.—Early last Thursday morning at the Bridgeport Hospital, Frederick Weidlich succumbed to terrible injuries received Wednesday night when his brother, Ernest, was instantly killed and the automobile in which they both had been riding was smashed by a fast moving train at the crossing of the Housatonic Railroad tracks on North Ave. This makes the third member of the Weidlich family whose death has been claimed in railroad accidents, another brother, Charles, having been killed when a trolley overturned at Ash Creek about 10 years ago. Both men were members of Weidlich Bros. Mfg. Co. and resided with their mother at 628 William St.
They were in a closed car, and, according to witnesses before Coroner Phelin, were unable to hear the violent blast which the siren of the onrushing locomotive emitted while approaching the crossing. The stories before the coroner differ somewhat. Engineer Burns and Fireman Wohn say that the automobile passed east in front of the train, while Stephen Barrett and Arthur L. Hayden, who witnessed the accident, said that the machine came north on Lindley St. and turned into the train to proceed west.
Engineer Burns stated that he did not see the automobile until he was almost upon it and then applied the brakes with such force that the engine stopped in its own length, but too late to avoid the tragedy.
Source: The Jewelers' Circular - 30th January 1918
*snip*
https://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=48749
Aha:
*snip*
1152580 Electric Switch, Louis Weidlich, Sep 7, 1915 - bar switch used on an electric candle.
1196913 Electric Candle-Lamp, Louis Weidlich, Sep 5, 1916, - uses a pointed thumb screw to pierce the cardboard battery jacket as switch
*snip*
https://www.prc68.com/I/FlashlightPat.shtml
https://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=01152580&IDKey=49BE29870F48%0D%0A&HomeUrl=%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fpatimg.htm
https://pdfpiw.uspto.gov/.piw?PageNum=0&docid=01196913&IDKey=D5BE699C6DCB%0D%0A&HomeUrl=%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fpatimg.htm
Quoting keramikos' research: "1196913 Electric Candle-Lamp, Louis Weidlich, Sep 5, 1916, - uses a pointed thumb screw to pierce the cardboard battery jacket as switch"
That pointed-thumb-screw idea must have been a novel thing then, but surely must not have turned out to be a very good solution in the long run...? <eeek>
Thank you keramiko and AnythingObscure,
The one in brass & the one I shared have the #701, the silver one is #700 and different design.
If it's patent pending doesn't that indicate it was made earlier?
Isn't an item usually marked silver or silver plate?
Thank you
knutte1, You're welcome. :-)
Yeah, I noticed that slight model number difference.
It could be that patent 1152580 was still pending when your particular 701 was first produced.
And yes, usually things that are silver-plated are marked as such, but perhaps the key word is "usually":
https://www.marthastewart.com/271850/the-language-of-silver-marks
Fascinating story and great research work!