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The lifts powered by hand were the first to lift goods on a platform. No doubt, involved workmen seized the opportunity of riding on the platform, and it could be said that these primitive lifts were the first to carry passengers, taking them out of buckets, bags and reciprocating rods. In the dim past, some entrepreneur, recognizing the limitations of what a hook on the end of a rope could lift, conceived the idea of substituting a cross head, stiles and platform, then running wooden rails up each side of the hoistway to keep the platform lined up with the holes in the floors. A car safety of any sort was yet to come. The hand-powered lift went on to become counterweighted and involved various styles of roping and gearing -- even brakes. Eventually, when a belt led off a steam drive, replacing the bull wheel rope or windlass, many a hand-powered lift found itself a pioneer in the act of modernization! This veteran was economical to operate, and where the usage was spasmodic and time not of the essence, it filled the bill well. Capacities ran from 500 to 10,000 pounds, and if adequate muscle was available, a "horseless carriage" could be raised for storage. The hand-powered type had the longest history of any lift. The not-so-dumb "Dumbwaiters" were also hand powered in its history but such mini-lifts have a history of their own in another Gallery.
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