2008/40

Sentry,

James Henry Atkinson (Designer), Procter Brothers (Manufacturer)

The 'Sentry' mouse trap was designed by James Henry Atkinson of Leeds, and was manufactured and sold by Procter Brothers.
The 'Sentry' mouse trap was designed by James Henry Atkinson of Leeds, and was manufactured and sold by Procter Brothers. It is a flat snap type mouse trap, which kills the mouse by breaking its back. Instead of relying on a treadle to release the striking frame and catch the mouse, as in the early ‘Little Nipper’ trap, the ‘Sentry’ used the bait hook. The design for the hook, which is made from a single length of wire, was registered by Atkinson in 1907 (No. 510977).

Mouse trap: wood, metal

See Figure 20b, p.34, in 'British Mouse Traps and their Makers' by David Drummond, 2008., The 83 mouse traps and 2 mole traps in this collection were acquired by David Drummond during the course of his research into the history of mouse traps. David Drummond is a zoologist who spent much of his professional life in advice and research on the control of rodents. Since retiring as the Ministry of Agriculture’s Chief Scientific Officer in charge of the Central Science Laboratories concerned with Plant Pests and Diseases in 1988, he has published many articles and books about mouse traps, their inventors and manufacturers, including ‘British Mouse Traps and their Makers’ (Mouse Trap Books, Dorking 2008). For further information, see http://www.mousetrapbooks.com.

Leeds, Leeds

1907

Wood, Metal