origin of the the wire coat hanger

origin of the the wire coat hanger .......................................................................................................................................................................................

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origin of the the wire coat hanger

the invention of the wire coat hanger is attributed to
albert j parkhouse in 1903.
albert worked for a company in jackson named
timberlake & sons.
john b. timberlake had managed to collect several dozen
enterprising inventor-type employees such as albert,
who made wire novelties, lampshades, and other ubiquitous
devices for their customer clients.

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in response to co-workers’ complaints of too few coat hooks,
and in a burst of inventive inspiration, albert j parkhouse bent
a piece of wire into two ovals with the ends twisted together
to form a hook.
then he grabbed some wire and twisted it around so that
it fit inside the shoulders of his coat. he bent another wire to
curl in the center, allowed him to hang the coat practically
anywhere he wanted.
he continued to refine the idea over the next few weeks
and soon, all the other employees started using copies
provided by albert.

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parkhouse patented his invention, but it is not known if he
profited from it.
timberlake's lawyer, charles l. patterson applied for the patent
on january 25, 1904, and U.S. patent # 822,981
was granted and assigned to john b. timberlake.
(patterson put his own name on the line that asked for
'name of inventor.')
a second patent, 877,726, was granted to timberlake's son in
1907, for a more elaborate hanger which he termed a 'shirt drier.'

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between 1900 and 1906, over 189 different patents were granted
on different versions of 'garment-hangers' worldwide.
steel wire has been used to shape the hanging garments,
sometimes combined with wood, fabric, or sheet metal,
for better or for worse, the functions changing with the
requirements of every era's clothing styles.
let's here examine some of the beautiful shapes and forms.

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victorian women's skirts and bustles received great care by
hanger inventors and manufacturers, with adjustable hangers often
using spring systems to hold the waistbands and allow the
skirts to retain pleats and folds. these hangers often took the
shape of flying birds and are referred to as eagle wing hangers.

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moving further into the twentieth century, wire manufacturers
were producing hundreds of styles of hangers meant to shape
and contour.
spring coiled wire gave dimension to some, while extra hooks
allowed belts and other accoutrements to hang from others.
travel hangers collapsed, folded, and telescoped with ease.
not to be outdone, tailors and clothing merchants advertised
their businesses on specialty hangers.

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see the related article
re-use of wire coat hangers

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more info on albert j parkhouse
http://www.vcnet.com/garym/hanger/hanger.html

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thanks to
the museum of useful things , cambridge, massachusetts / usa,
for collaboration on this article