Inventor Name
Mount, Wadsworth
Repository
National Museum of American History
Smithsonian Institution
Archives Center
P.O. Box 37012
MRC 601/Room 1100
Washington, DC 20013-7012
202-633-3270
http://americanhistory.si.edu/archives
Physical Description
1.09 cubic feet (1 records center box)
Summary
Wadsworth W. Mount (1907-1985) was educated at Amherst College and New York University. Mount had a great range of interests in his inventing career, from children's toys to military equipment and industrial devices, such as pipe-joining processes and patented sailing-boat hardware. He was issued more than 20 US patents as well as patents from Britain, Canada, France, Australia and other countries. The progress of his work on these projects is recorded in the various documents and photographs that constitute this collection.
The records in this collection were selected from among some 50 cubic feet of material, as being most representative of Mount's work. Retained were records providing biographical information about Mount and his career as an inventor; his general subject files, which document the wide range of his interests; and a sample of files fully documenting five of his major inventions, three of which were commercially successful and the other two were not. Of particular interest are the numerous documents detailing Mount's efforts, often over decades, in developing inventions. Notes on the concepts, testing of models and prototypes, and voluminous correspondence with patent attorneys, potential industrial users of the devices and photographs of equipment constitute the bulk of the collection. Several projects stand out as Mount's major efforts: solar stills (which store the sun's heat), a jet power burner, turnbuckles and swivel connectors for boats, the "Wadnut" (a self-tightening fastener) and, most importantly, a method of joining industrial piping.
Archival materials documenting five of Mount's numerous inventions: the solar still, a jet power burner, turnbuckles and swivel connectors for boats, the "wadnut" (a self-tightening fastener), and a method of joining industrial piping. The papers include notes on concepts, and on testing and prototypes; correspondence with patent attorneys and potential industrial users of the devices; photographs; biographical information on Mount; and a general subject file on his inventions.
Finding Aid
https://sirismm.si.edu/EADpdfs/NMAH.AC.0352.pdf