15 Forgotten Inventors Behind Everyday American Life

Share this post on:

Mary Anderson – The Woman Who Made Windshield Wipers Work

Picture a cold winter day in New York City, 1903, where drivers had to stop their trolleys every few minutes to scrape ice off their windshields by hand. That frustrating scene changed forever when Mary Anderson observed that streetcar drivers often had to open their windows in order to see during inclement weather, sometimes even stopping the streetcar to go outside to clear the window. The Alabama native’s simple observation led to one of the most essential car safety features we take for granted today. On November 10, 1903, the United States Patent Office awarded Anderson patent number 743,801 for her Window Cleaning device. Her invention featured a lever inside the vehicle that controlled a spring-loaded arm with a rubber blade, creating the first practical windshield wiper system. When Anderson tried to sell the rights to her invention through a noted Canadian firm of Dinning and Eckenstein in 1905, they rejected her application, arguing “we do not consider it to be of such commercial value as would warrant our undertaking its sale”. By 1913, the automobile manufacturing business had grown exponentially and windshield wipers were standard equipment. In 1922, Cadillac became the first car manufacturer to adopt them as standard equipment.

Garrett Morgan – Traffic Safety Revolutionary

In 1922, Morgan witnessed an accident between a horse-drawn carriage and a car which sparked inspiration to prevent future accidents. This Cleveland inventor didn’t just create the first three-position traffic signal – he revolutionized road safety for millions of drivers worldwide. Looking to solve the problem, Morgan invented a traffic signal featuring movable arms that directed the traffic to stop, go, or stop in all directions. This third option—a forerunner of today’s yellow, or amber, light—not only prevented collisions between vehicles but also allowed pedestrians to cross the street safely. Morgan quickly acquired patents for his traffic signal—a rudimentary version of the modern three-way traffic light—in the United States, Britain, and Canada but eventually sold the rights to General Electric for $40,000. Before his traffic light fame, Morgan had already saved countless lives with his smoke hood invention, which became the prototype for gas masks used in World War I. In 1916, Morgan rescued workers trapped in a water intake tunnel 50 ft (15 m) beneath Lake Erie, using the smoke hood to protect his eyes from smoke and featuring a series of air tubes that hung near the ground to draw clean air beneath the rising smoke.

Margaret E. Knight – The Paper Bag Pioneer

Every time you carry groceries in a flat-bottom paper bag, you’re using technology that dates back to 1871, thanks to Margaret Knight’s ingenious machine design. Before her invention, paper bags were more like envelopes – useless for carrying anything substantial. Knight’s machine could automatically fold and glue paper into the familiar flat-bottomed bags we know today, revolutionizing retail and grocery shopping across America. Her path to success wasn’t smooth; she had to fight a legal battle against a man who tried to steal her design, ultimately proving her case and securing her patent. The Massachusetts native spent months perfecting her machine, creating a device that could produce thousands of bags per day with remarkable precision. Knight’s innovation laid the groundwork for modern packaging and retail, making grocery shopping significantly more convenient for everyday Americans. What many don’t realize is that Knight held over 20 patents throughout her lifetime, making her one of the most prolific female inventors of the 19th century.

Willis Carrier – The Father of Cool Comfort

On July 17, 1902, Willis Haviland Carrier designed the first modern air-conditioning system, launching an industry that would fundamentally improve the way we live, work and play. His breakthrough came when he was tasked with solving a humidity problem at a Brooklyn printing plant where fluctuating moisture levels were ruining expensive color print jobs. While working for the Buffalo Forge Company in 1902, Carrier was tasked with solving a humidity problem that was causing magazine pages to wrinkle at Sackett-Wilhelms Lithographing and Publishing Company in Brooklyn. Through a series of experiments, Carrier designed a system that controlled humidity using cooling coils and secured a patent for his “Apparatus for Treating Air,” which could either humidify (by heating water) or dehumidify (by cooling water) air. On December 3, 1911, Carrier presented what is perhaps the most significant document ever prepared on air conditioning – Rational Psychrometric Formulae – at the annual meeting of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. It became known as the “Magna Carta of Psychrometrics.” This document tied together the concepts of relative humidity, absolute humidity, and dew-point temperature, thus making it possible to design air-conditioning systems to precisely fit the requirements at hand. The “Father of Air Conditioning,” Willis Carrier’s invention gave rise to numerous industries that power our economy today. Manufacturing of everything from baked goods to wartime supplies was made possible by air conditioning. Air conditioning led directly to summer movie blockbusters as people came to cooled theaters to escape the heat. The precise control of temperature and humidity made possible by his invention even enabled shopping malls, transatlantic flight, and the computers and servers that power the Internet.

Elijah McCoy – The Real Deal Behind “The Real McCoy”

When people say “the real McCoy,” they’re unknowingly honoring Elijah McCoy, a Canadian-born inventor whose automatic lubricator revolutionized industrial machinery in 1872. Born to escaped slaves who fled to Canada via the Underground Railroad, McCoy faced significant discrimination despite his engineering education in Scotland. His automatic oiling device solved a major problem for railroad companies and factories – machines constantly broke down because workers had to stop operations to manually oil moving parts. McCoy’s lubricator could oil machinery while it was still running, dramatically increasing efficiency and reducing wear and tear on expensive equipment. Railroad superintendents and factory managers began specifically requesting “McCoy’s lubricator” when purchasing equipment, leading to the phrase “the real McCoy” to distinguish his superior product from inferior imitations. Throughout his career, McCoy received 57 patents for various inventions, most related to lubrication systems for different types of machinery. His innovations were so valuable that the McCoy Manufacturing Company was eventually formed specifically to produce his inventions.

Charles Richard Drew – Blood Bank Pioneer

Dr. Charles Drew didn’t just save lives – he revolutionized how we preserve and distribute the very essence of life itself through his groundbreaking blood storage techniques. Working during World War II, Drew developed methods for processing and preserving blood plasma that could be stored for extended periods without refrigeration, making it possible to ship life-saving blood products to battlefields around the world. His research proved that plasma could be separated from whole blood and dried into powder form, then reconstituted with water when needed – a discovery that saved thousands of soldiers’ lives. Drew became the first director of the American Red Cross Blood Bank and established the first large-scale blood banking program in the United States. Tragically, despite his life-saving contributions to blood science, Drew faced racial segregation policies that initially excluded Black donors from blood drives – ironic considering his expertise made the entire system possible. His techniques for blood collection, testing, and storage became the foundation for modern blood banking systems used in hospitals worldwide. Drew’s innovations proved that scientific excellence knows no color boundaries, even when society tried to impose them.

Stephanie Kwolek – The Bulletproof Inventor

In 1965, chemist Stephanie Kwolek was trying to create lightweight fibers for car tires when she stumbled upon something that would save millions of lives – Kevlar. What started as a cloudy, odd-looking solution that most scientists would have thrown away became one of the strongest materials known to humanity, five times stronger than steel by weight. Kwolek’s supervisor initially didn’t want her to test the strange-looking polymer solution, but her persistence paid off when testing revealed its extraordinary strength and heat resistance. Today, Kevlar protects police officers, soldiers, and emergency responders around the world through bulletproof vests, helmets, and body armor. The material’s applications extend far beyond protection – it’s used in everything from spacecraft components to fiber optic cables, racing car tires, and even musical instrument strings. Kwolek worked for DuPont for 40 years and accumulated 17 patents, but Kevlar remains her most famous and life-saving contribution. Her discovery came at a time when few women worked in chemistry labs, making her achievement even more remarkable in breaking barriers both scientific and social.

Clarence Birdseye – The Frozen Food Revolutionary

Clarence Birdseye didn’t invent freezing – he perfected it, transforming how Americans eat and shop forever through his flash-freezing techniques developed in the 1920s. While fur trading in Labrador, Canada, Birdseye observed how Indigenous peoples preserved fish by letting them freeze instantly in the Arctic air, maintaining taste and texture far better than slow freezing methods. He realized that rapid freezing created smaller ice crystals that didn’t damage food cells, preserving flavor, nutrients, and texture in ways never achieved before. Back in the United States, Birdseye developed machines that could flash-freeze foods between two metal plates at temperatures as low as -40°F. His company, Birds Eye Frozen Foods, revolutionized American eating habits by making seasonal foods available year-round and enabling busy families to prepare quick, nutritious meals. The frozen food industry that Birdseye launched now generates over $50 billion annually in the United States alone. His innovations in packaging and distribution created the entire infrastructure for modern frozen food sections in grocery stores.

Lewis Latimer – The Light Bulb Perfectionist

While Thomas Edison gets credit for inventing the light bulb, it was Lewis Latimer who made electric lighting practical and affordable for ordinary households through his carbon filament improvements. Edison’s early bulbs lasted only a few hours because their paper and bamboo filaments burned out quickly, making electric lighting an expensive luxury. Latimer’s carbon filament, patented in 1882, lasted much longer and could be manufactured more efficiently, bringing electric lighting within reach of middle-class families. Born to escaped slaves, Latimer taught himself drafting and engineering while working as an office boy, eventually becoming one of the few Black inventors to work directly with Edison. His expertise in both the technical and business aspects of electric lighting made him invaluable – he not only improved the bulbs but also supervised the installation of electric lighting systems in major cities like New York, Philadelphia, and Montreal. Latimer wrote the first textbook on electric lighting, “Incandescent Electric Lighting: A Practical Description of the Edison System,” helping train the next generation of electrical workers. His improvements to light bulb design and manufacturing processes helped establish the foundation for the modern electrical industry. Without Latimer’s contributions, electric lighting might have remained a novelty for the wealthy rather than becoming the universal necessity we know today.

Lloyd Hall – Food Preservation Genius

Lloyd Hall’s food preservation innovations touch every American’s life multiple times daily, though few people know his name or recognize his contributions to food safety. Working as a consulting chemist in the early 20th century, Hall developed over 100 different formulations for curing and preserving meats, revolutionizing the food industry’s ability to prevent spoilage and bacterial contamination. His sodium chloride treatments replaced dangerous chemicals previously used in food preservation, making processed foods significantly safer for consumers while extending shelf life dramatically. Hall’s sterilization techniques using ethylene oxide gas became standard practice for sterilizing spices, herbs, and other food products, eliminating harmful bacteria without affecting taste or nutritional value. He held 59 patents for various food preservation methods, including processes for preserving foods in sealed containers and preventing rancidity in fats and oils. Hall’s work was particularly crucial during World War II, when his preservation techniques helped ensure that military rations remained safe and nutritious for soldiers overseas. His innovations enabled the growth of modern supermarkets and processed food industries, making it possible for families to stock pantries with safe, long-lasting food products. Today’s food preservation industry still relies heavily on principles and techniques that Hall developed nearly a century ago.

Bette Nesmith Graham – White-Out Wonder

In 1951, a single mother working as a secretary in Dallas was struggling to keep up with the demands of her job on the new IBM electric typewriters, which made errors more noticeable and harder to correct. Bette Nesmith Graham’s solution was as simple as it was revolutionary – she mixed tempera paint with water in her kitchen blender, creating the first correction fluid. Graham’s “white-out” invention started small, with her secretly using it at work and sharing bottles with fellow secretaries who desperately needed a way to fix typing mistakes without starting pages over completely. Despite being fired from her secretory job partly for spending time on her invention, Graham persevered and eventually built Liquid Paper Corporation into a multimillion-dollar business. By the 1970s, her company was producing 25 million bottles of correction fluid annually, making Graham one of the wealthiest self-made women in America. Her son Michael Nesmith would later become famous as part of the Monkees musical group, but his mother’s invention had far greater lasting impact on American office work. Graham’s story proves that sometimes the most transformative innovations come from people simply trying to solve their own everyday problems. When she sold Liquid Paper Corporation to Gillette in 1979 for $47.5 million, she used much of her wealth to support women’s business initiatives and the arts.

Alexander Miles – Elevator Safety Pioneer

Before Alexander Miles’ 1887 invention, riding in elevators was literally a death-defying experience, with open elevator shafts claiming numerous lives as people fell down the openings when cars weren’t present. Miles’ automatic elevator door mechanism solved this deadly problem by ensuring that both the elevator car doors and the shaft doors opened and closed together, preventing tragic accidents. His inspiration came from personal experience – he and his daughter were riding in an elevator when he noticed the shaft door had been left open, creating a potentially fatal hazard. Working as a barber in Duluth, Minnesota, Miles applied his mechanical aptitude to design a system using pulleys and weights that would automatically control elevator doors, making vertical transportation far safer. His patent covered both the mechanical aspects of automatic door operation and the electrical controls that synchronized the car and shaft doors. Miles’ innovation became standard in elevator design and laid the groundwork for modern elevator safety systems that protect millions of riders daily. The elevator industry quickly adopted his safety improvements, transforming elevators from dangerous contraptions into reliable transportation systems that made skyscrapers practical. Today’s sophisticated elevator systems still use principles that Miles pioneered over 130 years ago, proving the lasting value of his safety-focused approach to mechanical design.

Ruth Wakefield – The Accidental Cookie Creator

The chocolate chip cookie – America’s favorite cookie – was born from a happy accident in 1938 when Ruth Wakefield ran out of baker’s chocolate while making cookies at her Toll House Inn in Massachusetts. Instead of postponing her baking, Wakefield broke up a bar of Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate and mixed the pieces into her cookie dough, expecting them to melt and create chocolate cookies. To her surprise, the chocolate pieces held their shape, creating something entirely new and delicious that would become a national obsession. The cookies were such a hit with her inn’s guests that she started selling the recipe, which eventually caught the attention of Nestlé executives who struck a deal with her. Nestlé began printing Wakefield’s recipe on their chocolate bar packages and eventually started producing chocolate chips specifically for baking, with Wakefield receiving a lifetime supply of chocolate in exchange for her recipe rights. The Toll House cookie recipe became so popular that it appeared on the back of Nestlé chocolate chip packages for decades, making it one of the most reproduced recipes in American history. Wakefield’s accidental invention spawned an entire industry – Americans now consume over 7 billion chocolate chip cookies annually. Her simple mistake in a small-town inn kitchen created a treat that has brought joy to countless families and became synonymous with American home baking.

Benjamin Banneker – The Self-Taught Genius

Benjamin Banneker accomplished what seemed impossible for a free Black man in 18th-century America – he became a renowned mathematician, astronomer, and inventor entirely through self-education and determination. Born in 1731 to freed slaves, Banneker had only a few years of formal schooling but taught himself mathematics, astronomy, and engineering through borrowed books and careful observation of the natural world. His most famous mechanical achievement was constructing a wooden striking clock around 1753, using only a pocket watch as reference – the intricate timepiece kept accurate time for over 20 years. Banneker’s astronomical calculations were so precise that he published almanacs from 1792 to 1797, providing farmers with crucial information about moon phases, tides, and optimal planting times. His work caught the attention of prominent figures including Thomas Jefferson, to whom Banneker sent a copy of his almanac along with a letter challenging Jefferson’s views on racial equality. President George Washington appointed Banneker to the surveying team that laid out the boundaries of Washington, D.C., making him one of the few Black men to serve in an official government capacity during the early republic. When the lead surveyor quit and took the plans with him, Banneker recreated the entire layout from memory, ensuring the project could continue. His achievements proved that genius and capability know no racial boundaries, challenging the prejudiced assumptions of his era through the power of scientific accomplishment.

Marian Croak – VoIP Visionary

Marian Croak pioneered the technology responsible for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone systems. Engineer Marian Croak has worked on advancing Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technologies, converting voice data into digital signals that can be easily transmitted over the internet rather than using traditional phone lines. Her work has furthered the capabilities of audio and video conferencing, making it a practical reality in today’s world. After graduating from the University of Southern California with a Ph.D. in quantitative analysis (otherwise referred to as data science) and social psychology, Marian Croak soon began working for Bell Labs in 1982. In 1982, Croak began her career at Bell Labs (later AT&T) with a position in the Human Factors research division, looking at how technology could be used to positively impact people’s lives. At this time period of ARPANET and the beginnings of the internet, Marian believed in TCP, and with her knowledge, foresight, and expertise, convinced the entirety of AT&T and Bell Labs to switch to TCP. Croak has been awarded over 200 patents, almost half of which are in VoIP. During her 32 years working at the company, she earned more than 200 patents, many of which were related to VoIP technology. During her career, Croak and her team created a text-to-donate system for charitable organizations that first saw widespread use after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, which raised $130,000. After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the technology raised $43 million in donations. Today, the widespread use of VoIP technology is vital for remote work and conferencing, as well as personal communications.

Otis Boykin – The Resistor Revolutionary

Otis Boykin’s electrical resistor improvements literally keep hearts beating around the world, though most people have never heard of the inventor who made modern pacemakers possible. Working in the 1950s and 1960s, Boykin developed more reliable and precise electrical resistors that could withstand extreme conditions while maintaining consistent performance. His resistors were so superior to existing technology that they became essential components in early computers, television sets, and military equipment during the Cold War era. Boykin’s most significant contribution was creating resistors specifically designed for medical devices, particularly the control units in pacemakers that

Share this post on: