Screw machineIn 1798, the first U.S. patent for a nut and bolt machine was issued to inventor David Wilkinson of Rhode Island. His machine for cutting screw threads incorporated a slide-rest, with a heavy carriage supported on three rollers Afterwards, his machine was operated by water power at Pawtucket Falls, RI. Wilson was a machinist who also produced iron forgings and castings for the cotton industry industry there, such as Slater's Mill. Wilkinson later produced a large general purpose lathe (1806), a pioneering advance that founded the American machine tool industry. [The first machine of importance for trimming the heads of nuts and bolts was invented later by Micah Rugg, who was issued U.S. patent No. 2,766 on 31 Aug 1842.]« |