Today in 1884, US Patent 305227 A was issued, an invention of Bernard Rice, for his “Beer-Chip.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:

This invention has for its object to produce a beer-chip which is free from resinous and other similar matters; and to this end it consists in making the chip from a sheet or strip of veneer cut from a log, beam, or plank previously steamed, as herein more fully described.