On this day in 1929 the patent for Barrel Truck was granted. U.S. Patent No. 1,738,096.
The Barrel Truck was invented by Perino B. Cole, from Cambridge, Nebraska on December 3, 1929 as U.S. Patent No. 1,738,096.
Mr. Cole’s invention relates to trucks for handling barrels, bales or like containers, and the general object of the invention is to provide a barrel carrier or truck so constructed that a barrel may be readily engaged with the truck for transportation or released therefrom for discharge.
A further object is to provide a truck of this kind provided at its ends with rockers whereby the truck may be very readily tilted back from an upright position to an inclined position on its front wheels.
One thing about the Barrel Truck that made it novel is that it could be attached to a truck, unattached from a truck and then used like a dolly to transport the item still in the barrel. This made getting products to customers quick and efficient.
This invention is still used today but with a lot of modifications to it. The safety concern of having the Barrel Truck attached to the hitch of a truck is not as safe as what is required now, a trailer with brake lights, proper wheels etc. I have seen improvements to this where the barrel is now made of metal allowing for the ability to ship a lot of different items. Wood barrels are limited in what they can ship.
The concept of this invention has played a role in a lot of modern developments. One that comes to mind first is the trash cans we now use and get from the sanitation company. Those trash cans are modified versions of the Barrel Truck. They can be filled with objects and pulled out to a location with ease. They are just not made to be attached to a truck and hauled somewhere.
