Gipe Carrier Company

Emanuel Clarence Gipe of Freeport, Illinois took out a patent as early as 1892. The diagram shows a system used two wires to each station and cars with two sets of wheels. The wires were separated at the departure end with a lever device and brought together at the destination end. The separation of the wires propelled the carriage. In the "closed wire" system the wires could be closed as soon as the carriage had been despatched, giving a neater appearance.

Gipe systems were quite popular in England. Probably the last system to survive in a shop was at Grouts, Palmers Green. There are examples of Gipe systems in Trowbridge Museum and Devizes Museum. A Gipe carrier was also used in the Gloucester telegram office.

Gipe came to London in 1908 and set up the Gipe Carrier Co. Ltd. He sold a controlling interest to Lamsons but it was run as a separate company from a separate address - at first Gamage Buildings, 118 Holborn and later 180 Goswell Road. In 1944 the Gipe system was renamed the Lamson 'Ariel'. There is an example in Crich Tramway Museum.

Gipe appears to have been active also in Canada. Canadian patent 169288 was issued on 9 May 1916 to the Gipe-Hazard Store Service Company Limited, the inventor being Frederick J. H. Hazard.

Like Lamson's carriers, Gipe's were also used outside shops. "Where process or other cards have to be sent to different departments the 'Gipe' carrier, as used in retail shops for sending the bill and money to the cash desk, will save a lot of running about. The author has one 250 ft. long giving good service." Griffiths, W.R.J. The works engineer: a practical manual on building and plant maintenance for the works manager and works engineer. 3rd ed. (Pitman, 1951)