No. 689,689. v Patented Dec. 24, ISO l. L. E. PARKER &. J. S. GDTT.
CARD 0B PHOTOGRAPH HOLDER. (Application filed Out. 16, 1961.
(No model;
I WITNESSES:
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UNITED STATES LUCIEN ELlPI-IAZ PARKER AND JOHN SHEPARDSON GOTT, OF LENOX k MASSACHUSETTS.
PATENT OFFICE.
CARD OR PHOTOGRAPH HOLDER.
' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 689,689, dated December 24, 1901.
Application filed October 16, 1901. Serial No. 78,808. (No model.)
To all whom it may concern.-
 Be it known that we, LUoIEN ELIPHAZ PARKER and JOHN SHEPARDSON Gorr, citizens of the United States, and residents of Lenox, in the county of Berkshire and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and Improved Card or Photograph Holder, of which the following is a full clear, and exact description.
 Our invention relates to improvements in card or photograph holders and the object that we have in view is the provision ofa simple, inexpensive, and efficient clamping device capable of engaging a card, photograph, or other object without perforating, creasing, or bendin g the article, which allows a number of objects to be strung in series or to be arranged in groups or any other desired order, which permits the use of cards of different shapes, thicknesses, and sizes, which enables the user to place a stack of photographs or to group them together in one place without having vacant holders left over, and which provides for the easy removal of any card or photograph without disturbing other cards, and in case a number of photographs are to be stored away the improved holder can be folded upon itself, so as to allow the photographs or cards to be arranged face to face, thus disposing the photographs -in a manner to afford protection to their faces and at the same time take up very little room.
 With these ends in view our invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed.
 Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.
 Figure l is a perspective view illustrating a series of our improved holders adapted to suspend a series of photographs or cards. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the improved holder. Fig. 3 is an edge view of said holder; and Fig. 4 is another edge view of the holder, showing the clasps thereof folded together.
 The improved holder consists of the clasps 5 6 and the bail orelongated loop 7. Each clasp of the holder is made from wire which is first bent substantially into the form of a ring, and this ring is doubled or bent upon itself in the manner shown by Fig. 3, so as to produce the two clam ping members or portions, which are indicated at 8 9. At one clamping portion themember 8 of each clasp is a continuous piece of wire, as shown by Fig. 2, while the other clamping portion ormember 9 of each clasp is divided, owing to the fact that it is formed by bringing the two ends of the wire together in the manner indicated at the upper holder in Fig. 1. The described method of bending the wire to form each clasp provides bights orloops 10 at the ends of each clasp, and the bight-formed ends of the two clasps are brought close together in the manner shown by Figs. 2 and 3 in order to receive theelongated loop 7. Thisloop 7 serves to loosely couple or connect the two clasps, because it engages with the bights in the ends of said olasps. As shown by Fig. 2, the axis of the loop orbail 7 is transverse to the combined axes of the two clasps, and the use of said elongated bail permits a single device to couple the two clasps together. It is to be observed that the bail loosely connects the clasps, and the latter are free to turn on the side portions of the bail,
so that they may assume different angular positions with relation to each other and to the bail. In fact, the clasps may be folded one upon the other in the manner shown by Fig. 4, thus allowing the cards or photographs to be folded face to face when the clamps occupy the positions described.
 By reference to Fig. 3 it will be observed that theclamping portions 8 9 of each clasp are disposed in slightly-convergent relation from the coupling-bail 7 toward the free edge of the clasp. This construction allows the clamping portions to frictionally engage with the cards or photographs, which may vary in thickness, and the frictional engagment of the members of the clasp with the card secures a firm connection between the holder and said card, thus overcoming the necessity of perforating the card for the passage of ribbons, cords, or the like to unite the parts together. At the same time the clamping of the card within the clasp does not injure or abrade the Patent 1. A card-holder, comprising individual clasps, each bent from a piece of wire and having bights at the ends thereof, and an elongated loop or bail loosely connected to the bight-formed ends of said clasps.
 2. A card-holder, comprising clasps, each formed by doublingawire ring upon itself to produce inclined clamping portions and bights at the ends of each clasp, and a single elongated loop loosely engaged with said bight-formed ends of the clasps.
 As an article of the class described, comprising individual clasps of corresponding form, and each having gripping members and eyes or bights, and a loop fitting said eyes or bights, and loosely coupling the clasps together,whereby the clasps may be folded upon one another or they may be disposed in alined or angular relation.
 In witness whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.
LUOIEN ELIPHAZ PARKER. JOHN SHEPARDSON GOTT.
Witnesses:
H. D. WOOD, JAMES J. RIGNEY.