National Gate Company

Does anyone remember the National Gate Company? It was a concern started in 1903 for the manufacture of an invention by Mr. George S. Patrick of Dicksville in the Town of Marshall.

That invention was described as a "self opening and closing gate," made of iron pipe and wire. The gate was constructed so that the wheels of a wagon passing over a small iron hoop which, when pressed down, pulled a small chain fastened at the  bottom of the hinge end of the gate. This caused the latch to lift and the weight swung the gate inward. When the wagon had passed through, the chain was released and the gate closed.

The National Gate Company was in the old cheese factory on Route 315, where an engine and other machinery for the manufacture of the gates were installed. The capital stock was $15,000, and the officers were as follows: president, Robert Hadcox; vice-president W.F. Kimball; secretary and treasurer Abram Van Vechten; superintendent of construction, George S. Patrick.

Mr. Patrick, who was a prominent hop grower and farmer, secured a patent for his innovative design through patent attorneys in Utica. He exhibited the self-opening gate at the Brookfield Fair in 1903, which captured the attention of many people, including W.C. McAdam, who termed the invention an important industry for the Town of Marshall and became it's attorney.

The only other mention of the National Gate Company was notice of the dissolution of the company in 1915. Mr. Patrick, after serving the town in one capacity or another, passed away in 1928.