They Invented What? African American Inventors and Their Life-Changing Ideas.
We often take everyday items for granted, but imagine life without some of the discoveries here. From things we encounter daily to life-changing technology, let's celebrate diversity and the ingenuity that led to these inventions and see how many you can match to their African American discoverer.
When you're done head over to limalibrary.com/communityread and learn about Lima Library's pick for our first ever community read, Everybody's Son, and participate in all of our book related activities there.
When you're done head over to limalibrary.com/communityread and learn about Lima Library's pick for our first ever community read, Everybody's Son, and participate in all of our book related activities there.
This ophthalmologist patented a device in 1988 that revolutionized the way cataract surgery was performed and brought sight back to many around the world. Who was the doctor?
Dr. Bath was an early pioneer in the field of laser cataract surgery. She had many accomplishments including the first African American woman to serve on staff as a surgeon at UCLA Medical Center and the first African American woman doctor to receive a patent for a medical purpose. Bath co-founded The American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness and through the organization was able to give the gift of sight and spread information on eye care to communities across the world, including to those in impoverished communities.
Dr. Patricia Bath
Dr. Charles Richard Drew
Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler
Dr. Leonidas Berry
Which inventor and entrepreneur improved the long-haul transportation of perishable goods with their innovations in refrigeration?
Jones received the National Medal of Technology and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his innovations in refrigeration. He was a co-founder of Thermo King.
Alexander Miles
Percy Lavon Julian
aaregistry.org
Frederick McKinley Jones
Otis Boykin
This inventor helped to make electric lighting practical and affordable for the average household. Who was he?
Lewis Latimer expanded upon Thomas Edison's design for the incandescent light bulb by designing a filament that was made from carbon, greatly increasing the length of time the bulb would remain lit. His design allowed electric lighting to be more attainable by the average household and more practically applied.
George Washington Carver
Lewis Howard Latimer
Garrett Morgan
Elijah McCoy
Riding the elevator became a much safer experience by this inventor who patented an elevator door that could open and close automatically. Can you name the inventor?
Miles received a patent for his automatically opening and closing elevator doors in 1887. He improved on the elevator door mechanism by adding a flexible belt to the elevator cage and positioning drums that would indicate if the elevator had reached a floor. The belt allowed doors to automatically open and close when it reached the drum at each floor using a series of levers and rollers. He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2007.
Richard Spikes
Alexander Miles
David Crosthwait
Jan Ernst Matzeliger
We can rest, assured that our homes are being safely monitored for intruders, thanks to the innovative thinking of this inventor who patented a design for the first home security system. Who was the inventor?
Marie Van Brittan Brown, along with her husband Albert, filed a patent for the first home security system in 1969, consisting of door peepholes, a camera, monitors, and a two-way microphone. A camera at the door would project an image on a monitor placed anywhere in the home, allowing the owner to see who was at the door. A microphone allowed the owner to speak with the person at the door and police could be notified at the push of a button if an intruder was present or the door could be remotely unlocked if a visitor was expected. Her invention was the first to utilize closed circuit television for security purposes and was the precursor to the home security systems used today. Brown received an award for her invention from the National Scientists Committee.
Marie Van Brittan Brown
George Edward Alcorn Jr.
Mary Davidson Kenner
James E. West
Which National Inventor's Hall of Fame inductee is most famous for his invention of an imaging X-ray spectrometer?
Alcorn Jr. is responsible for 20 inventions including an imaging x-ray spectrometer, allowing for the detection of radio signatures at a greater distance and with more accuracy. His inventions have allowed for planetary mapping, the discovery of new planets, the creation of star charts, and the examination of deep space phenomena. This work earned him a patent in 1984 and the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Inventor of the Year Award. In addition to his work on the spectrometer, Alcorn contributed to the process used for the plasma etching of semiconductors used in electronic devices. Alcorn is dedicated to giving back to the community through his extensive involvement in recruiting minority and women scientists and engineers, offering honors programs for inner-city youths, and encouraging African American males to pursue doctorates in science and engineering.
Frederick McKinley Jones
George Crum
Otis Boykin
George Edward Alcorn Jr.
Which surgeon developed methods to store large quantities of blood plasma donations allowing many soldier's lives to be saved during WWII?
Trained as a surgeon, Dr. Charles Richard Drew extensively studied and advanced the knowledge of the field of blood transfusions. His improved techniques for blood storage led to the development of large scale blood banks at the outset of WWII, saving the lives of countless Allied forces. Appointed director of the American Red Cross in February of 1941, he resigned this position in 1942 based on their policy of maintaining racial segregation in blood donations, a practice which was maintained until 1950. Drew died in a car accident in 1950 on his way to attendance at an annual free clinic at the John A Andrew Memorial Hospital in Tuskegee, Alabama.
Garrett Morgan
Percy Lavon Julian
Charles Richard Drew
Ernest E. Just
Which entrepreneur has the distinction of being the first female self-made millionaire in America, according to the Guinness Book of World Records?
Madam C.J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove, developed and marketed a line of cosmetics and hair care products designed for black women. Sarah learned about haircare from her brothers, who were barbers and became involved in haircare when she began working as a commission agent for Annie Malone, an African American hair care entrepreneur. Sarah used her new found knowledge and began to develop her own product line. After her marriage to her third husband, Charles Walker, in 1906, Sarah began using the name Madam C. J. Walker and in 1910 established headquarters for the Madam C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company in Indianapolis. Along with training in sales and grooming, Walker taught other black women to budget and build their businesses so they too could be on the path to financial independence. As Walker's wealth increased she became more involved in philanthropy, contributing to the local YMCA and various scholarship funds, among other things. She also became more involved in political matters, delivering lectures and joining organizations such as the New York chapter of the NAACP. Walker died May 25, 1919.
Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley
Sarah Boone
Madam C. J. Walker
Marie Van Brittan Brown
This inventor patented a machine to automatically attach the sole onto the upper portion of the shoe, greatly reducing the cost of shoes for the average person. Who was the inventor?
Jan Ernst Matzeliger apprenticed in the Colonial Shipworks in Paramaribo, which had been in his family's holdings for three generations. There he displayed an aptitude for machinery and mechanics at an early age. Arriving in Philadelphia, Pa via a merchant ship from Dutch Guiana, now Suriname, Matzeliger became employed in the shoe trade. He continued to learn about the shoe industry after moving to Massachusetts, later becoming employed at the Harney Brother Shoe factory. At the time shoes were made by hand, first by creating a wood mold of the person's foot called a last. Then the shoes were sized and shaped on the mold. The sole had to be manually attached to the upper portion. Matzeliger developed a machine, the automatic shoe laster, that could mechanically attach the sole to the upper shoe. The invention made it possible to produce 150 to 700 pairs of shoes a day where previously a worker could hand produce 50 pairs during a 10-hour work day. Matzeliger was obsessed with his work and thus often neglected his health by working long hours and forgoing eating. He succumbed to tuberculosis just shy of his 37th birthday, August 24, 1889.
Jan Ernst Matzeliger
Shelby Davidson
George Washington Carver
Samuel Scottron
The invention of a safety hood, the precursor of the WWII gas mask, made it possible to breathe in polluted air. Who was the inventor?
Garrett Morgan is responsible for multiple inventions, most notably a safety hood and the three position traffic signal. His safety hood was used in 1916 to rescue miners caught in a tunnel construction collapse under Lake Erie. The safety hood covered the face and was designed to protect the eyes from smoke. A series of air tubes hung to the ground to allow the wearer to draw in clean air beneath the rising smoke. Morgan operated a series of businesses over the years including a sewing machine shop, a clothing shop and the G. A. Morgan Hair Refining Company, which sold hair care products including his patented hair straightening cream. Morgan also improved upon the traffic signal by introducing a third light as a warning indicator. Today the yellow signal light alerts drivers that they should prepare to stop. Morgan was a member of several organizations and helped co-found the Cleveland Association of Colored Men which later merged with the NAACP as well as donated to historically Black colleges and universities. Morgan died in Cleveland in 1963.
Percy Lavon Julian
Elijah McCoy
Granville T. Woods
Garrett Morgan
What do cell phones, laptops, baby monitors, and hearing aids have in common? They all contain microphone technology developed, in part, by this African American?
West holds over 250 foreign and U.S. patents for microphones and techniques for creating polymer foil electrets. Working with Gerhard Sessler, they invented the foil electret microphone in 1962 while working on research for human hearing. The name comes from the words electrostatic and magnet and it used a permanently charged material in its construction to eliminate the need for a power supply. This type of technology is used in 90% of the microphones used in devices today. An advocate for diversity in the science and technology, West had a hand in the creation of the Corporate Research Fellowship Program as well as the Summer Research Program, which have together provided opportunities for non-white graduate students. He also has served on the Board of Directors of the Ingenuity Project, providing opportunities to middle and high school science and math students in the Baltimore schools. West has received multiple awards, including the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, and was inducted into the National Inventors hall of Fame.
Mark Dean
Lonnie G. Johnson
James E. West
Thomas L. Jennings
This chemist was the first to synthesize the natural drug physostigmine using the Calabar bean. The drug is used to treat glaucoma. Who was the inventor?
Julian was a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of medicinal drugs from plants. In addition to first synthesizing physostigmine, he also was a pioneer in the synthesis of progesterone and testosterone from plant sterols. His work served as the basis for the drug industry's production of other human hormones, including cortisone and other corticosteroids as well as birth control pills. He later started his own research firm, Julian Laboratories, Inc. to synthesize steroid intermediates from the wild Mexican Yam, greatly reducing the cost of the drug intermediates for pharmaceutical companies and thus expanding the availability of several drugs. The recipient of multiple awards and honors, he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1973. Julian founded the Julian Research Institute, a nonprofit organization that he managed for the rest of his life. He died April 19, 1975.
Patricia Bath
Annie Malone
Percy Lavon Julian
Charles Richard Drew
Sometimes you just have to have some fun. This next inventor, although an engineer, is best known for inventing the Super Soaker water toy. Who was he?
Johnson, an aerospace engineer, spent 12 years working on various projects for Nasa. Some of those projects including work in the Air Force missions Lab and it was during this time he envisioned creating the toy Super Soaker, although initially it was named the Power Drencher. The toy was a hit and generated $20 million in sales in 1991 alone. Later he conceived of replacing the soaker's water with foam projectiles and the precursor to the Nerf toy was born. Johnson currently has two tech companies that focus on the development and production of solid state batteries, in particular thin film batteries and the development of a thermo-electrochemical converter system with potential applications in solar power plants and ocean thermal power generation.
Jerry Lawson
Lonnie G. Johnson
Otis Boykin
Willie Hobbs Moore
Failure is not a bad thing
Everybody has to start somewhere! Visit the library and learn more about African American inventors.
Not great, but it could be worse!
There's always room for improvement! Visit the library to learn more about the contributions of African American inventors.
You did well! You could, however, do better.
Not too bad! Learn more about African American inventors and their contributions at the library.
Amazing! You really know your quotes!
Amazing! You really know your history! Find more African American inventors to learn about at the library.
