You've got questions about discovering, preserving and celebrating your family history; our experts have the answers.
Q My grandmother gave me a newspaper article about an ancestor who received a patent for some kind of saw in 1911 or 1912. I've tried searching the
US Patent and Trademark Office Web site, but haven't found any matches. I don't have a patent number. Now what?
A.The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) database, unfortunately, isn't searchable by a person's name for patents issued prior to 1976. To find your ancestor in that database, you'd need to know the patent number or the current US patent classification number.
You still can find your ancestor's patent information if you have his full name and a guess of the years when he applied for a patent, according to researcher Nick D'Alto. First, visit www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/ptdl to find a nearby Patent and Trademark Depository Library (PTDL)—part of a network of libraries that hold USPTO materials. At the PTDL, look for your ancestor in the Index of Patents Issued From the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Part I: Patentee/Assignee Index, available on microfiche. This index is an annual alphabetical list of of inventors and their patents.
Once you find a patent number, you'll be able to search for his patent on the USPTO Web site. But while you're at a PTDL, look up the patent number in the Official Gazette of the United States Patent and Trademark Office to find the official abstract describing your ancestor's invention.
For more information on researching patents and what they can tell you about your ancestors, see the April 2004 Family Tree Magazine.