Home > United States Patent and Trademark Office

The PTO, currently based in the Crystal City area of Arlington, Virginia, will complete a move to consolidated offices in Alexandria, Virginia by 2005.

Since 1991, the office has been fully funded by fees charged for processing patents and trademarks.

1 Mission

The mission of the PTO is to promote "industrial and technological progress in the United States and strengthen the national economy" by:

• administering the laws relating to patents and trademarks;
• advising the Secretary of Commerce, the President of the United States, and the administration on patent, trademark, and copyright protection; and
• providing advice on the trade-related aspects of intellectual property.

2 Patents

• Each year, the PTO issues thousands of patents to companies and individuals all around the world. As of August 2004, the PTO has issued nearly seven million patents.

• The X-PatentThe X-Patents are all the patents issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office from July 1790 (when the first U. patent was issued), to July 1836. The actual number is unknown, but 9,957 is the most accurate estimate. They were burned in a fires (the first 10,000 issued between 1790Events January 8 George Washington gives the first State of the Union Address. January 30 The first boat specialized as a lifeboat is tested on the River Tyne. February 1 In New York City the Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time. and 1836Events January Book by Maria Monk claims that she was sexually exploited in a Canadian convent February 3 United States Whig Party holds its first convention in Albany, New York. February 23 The siege of the Alamo begins in San Antonio, Texas. February 24) were destroyed by a fire; less than 3,000 of those have been recovered and re-issued with numbers ending in "X" to distinguish them from those issued after the fire.

3 External links

• PTO website
• PTO searches
• Patent Office Pony (BooksEnthsiast.com), a history of the early years of the PTO
• References for PTO History
• Delphion's Gallery of Obscure Patents