The safety egg carrier on display at the Harvard Historical Society. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)

In 1890 Samuel Houghton filed a patent for his small egg carrier. In 1899 he patented a larger carrier. CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

The second part in our "Profiling History" series continues with a look at an invention for the practical transportation of eggs. It can be viewed at the Harvard Historical Society on Still River Road.

In November of 1889, Samuel Herbert Houghton purchased 3 Fairbank Street from the widow of blacksmith Charles Bisbee. Houghton operated a profitable carriage painting business out of the property and was also a carpenter by trade. He had a solid reputation in Harvard as "the best framer in town." He was known for his creativity and was always looking for ways to improve existing machinery and common routines.

As the years went by, Houghton began to focus more time on inventions and less on carpentry. He secured three patents during his life. The first was in 1883 for an improved door roller useful for opening large doors like the ones found on barns. These were sold in small quantities and largely to builders in the region.

Inventor Samuel Houghton (Courtesy photo)

In 1890, his second patent was for a small wire egg carrier. Although costly, the carriers greatly reduced egg breakage and were popular for what was dubbed "fancy and hatching" eggs. He sold the product through his company the Safety Egg Carrier Company.

The product became popular and was featured in an article from the March 19, 1892, issue of the Clinton Courant: "'The Safety Egg Carrier Company,' of this place filled an order yesterday for Mr. Vanderbilt of New York, for use on his fancy poultry farm, and orders, we understand, are now coming in from places all over the country."

In 1899, Houghton secured another patent on an improvement in wire egg carriers of the same nature. These carriers were used to hold various sizes of eggs and for quantities ranging from one dozen to twelve dozen. His carriers can be found for sale in an 1899 trade periodical from the Josheph Breck and Sons Catalogue of Horticultural and Agricultural Implements and Tools out of Boston. The carriers ranged in price from $1.20 to $4.50.

Houghton manufactured all of his egg carriers at 3 Fairbank Street, a building that would come to be known later as the Harvard Tea Room. Today, it is an antiques shop run by current resident Pat Hatch.

Houghton had many other inventions including a wagon jack, asparagus buncher, and apple box press. They all sold successfully; however, Houghton never obtained patents for any them.

When Houghton died in 1919, the Turner Public Spirit recognized his success as an inventor with an obituary that read, "Mr. Houghton was a remarkable intellectual man. His various inventions won for him a nation wide reputation. The Houghton Egg Case, the most perfect one on the market, was shipped all over North and South America."