On December the 8th 1891 S.F. O'reilly was issued the first patent for an electric tattooing device. His patent was in reality only issued on the tube assembly, as the rest of his machine was identical to that of Edisons autographic printer. O'reilly modified the tube using an offset arm, and a needle assembly attached to a bar. The Cam conversion of a rotary driven electromagnetic oscillating unit enabled the machine to drive the needle in a back and forth motion. O'Reilly was depicted in a photograph in the Los Angeles Sunday Times using his tattoo machine with a battery as a primary power source, on October 24th, 1884. Unfortunately the picture does not show whether or not the device had been fitted with his modified tube, or with Edisons original tube which had a considerably shorter stroke, which would have rendered the tattooing process as cumbersome and slow.

On Febuary 12, 1894, the government of Great Britain issued its first patent for a tattoo machine to Sutherland MacDonald, of London. The tattoo machine which MacDonald patented was not at all like previous patents issued either in England or the United States. His machine was a single coil machine which ran on electricity. Five years later a patent was issued to another British tattoo artist, A. C. South. This may well prove to be the first prototype of the tattoo machine as we know it today. South was issued a patent on June 30th, 1899. This machine was made up of two coils, enclosed in a brass box, and had an ink reservoir in the tube. It was accepted by the British patent office in 1900 as both a tattooing device, and an engraving device.

In 1904 an American emerged on the market with yet another patent for a tattoo machine. Charles Wagner applied for his patent on April 19th, 1904, and recieved his patent August 23rd of the same year. Wagners invention was also a double coil contraption, but his had the coils placed side by side. Other innovations credited to Wagner were leaf type rear spring, and a wire tension device to prevent needle vibration. There was also a stroke regulator, and a set of points. The Wagner machine was the tattoo machine of choice for the next 25 years. There were several minor changes and innovations over this period, but it wasn't until January 30th, 1929 that Percy Waters applied for his patent of what we know today as the Modern Tattoo Machine. Prior to that time he made a tattoo machine which was an almost exact replica of the Wagner machine. The Waters machine had twin coils, leaf springs, and an ingenious device attached to the frame to turn the power on and off.

There were a lot of others who made minor design changes in the tattoo machine, among them such notables as William Jones, and Milton Zeis. In the next issue of the History of Tattoo Machines, we will take a look at some of the men who built tattoo machines from the 1930's through the 1960's. included will be materials, styles, and modifications. In the third and final chapter will be a look at contemporary machine builders, new innovations, and a possible look into the future of the tattoo machine. Untill then, "Keep the colors flowing."

D. "ACE" Daniels