"William B.Purvis"(January 7,1890)

On this date William received a patient for the fountain pen.The pen eliminated the

need for an ink bottle by storing ink within a reservoir within the pen which is then fed to the pen's tip.Of his accomplishment,William said,"the object of my invention is to provide a  simple,durable,and inexpensive construction of a fountain pen adapted to general use and which may be carried in the "pocket."In addition to his fountain pen,William,a resident of Philadelphia,Pennsylvania,also successfully patented a number of other inventions.Between 1884 & 1897 he patented bag machines,a bag fastener,a hand stamp an electric railway device,an electric railway switch and a magnetic car balancing device.He is also believed to have invented,yet not patented several other devices such as the edge cutter found on aluminum foil,cling wrap and wax paper boxes.