The Museum of the Grand Prairie is located in Mahomet, Illinois. We are part of the Champaign County Forest Preserve District, and our mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret the natural and cultural history of Champaign County and East Central Illinois.
Through diverse experiences, we seek to inspire our audiences with a sense of connection to, and stewardship of, their natural and cultural world.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Rope Machine
We had two correct guesses on this one! Both an Anonymous commenter on our blog, and Brent on our Facebook page knew that this was indeed a rope maker.
According to our database, this particular rope maker was from 1901. Just a little bit of Googling helped me figure out that this is a Bucklin rope maker, patented November 12, 1901.
According to the text from the patent, "the object of the [rope making machine] is to provide simple and effective means whereby
rope can be quickly made by hand from lengths or strands of cord, twine, and
the like, and is particularly intended for use by farmers who have lengths or
strands of cord and twine left over from binding-machines or other similar
devices, which are usually wasted", probably making this a very handy invention. Just judging by the number of these that seem to have lasted to the present day, it must have been both a sturdy and popular choice.
The rope maker works by using three hooks, attached to the geared portions, to twist the chosen materials into rope. Here is a rather charming demonstration we found from an Edwardian farm, demonstrating the same principles on a larger, slightly different machine.
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