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This list of African-American inventors and scientists documents many of the African Americans who have invented a multitude of items or made discoveries in the course of their lives. These have ranged from practical everyday devices to applications and scientific discoveries in diverse fields, including physics, biology, math, and medicine.
Elijah J. McCoy (May 2, 1844 [A] – October 10, 1929) was a Canadian-American engineer of African-American descent who invented lubrication systems for steam engines. Born free on the Ontario shore of Lake Erie to parents who fled enslavement in Kentucky , he traveled to the United States as a young child when his family returned in 1847 ...
Richard Bowie Spikes (October 2, 1878 – January 22, 1963) was an African-American inventor who held several United States patents. He is credited with developing and improving inventions such as a beer tap, a modification of an automatic gear shift mechanism for motor vehicles, and a safety braking system for trucks and buses.
Granville Tailer Woods (April 23, 1856 – January 30, 1910) was an American inventor who held more than 50 patents in the United States. [1] He was the first African American mechanical and electrical engineer after the Civil War. [2] Self-taught, he concentrated most of his work on trains and streetcars.
Thomas L. Jennings (c. 1791 – February 12, 1859) was an African-American inventor, tradesman, entrepreneur, and abolitionist in New York City, New York.He has the distinction of being the first African-American patent-holder in history; he was granted the patent in 1821 for his novel method of dry cleaning. [1]
Philip B. Downing (1857-1934) was an African American inventor from Providence, Rhode Island. He is known for his most significant invention, the operating street railway switch. This allowed the switches to be opened or closed by using a brass arm located next to the brake handle on the platform of the car.
Pages in category "African-American inventors" The following 100 pages are in this category, out of 100 total. ... Benjamin Bradley (inventor) Charles B. Brooks;
William B. Purvis (12 August 1838 – 10 August 1914) [1] was an African-American inventor and businessman who received multiple patents in the late 19th-century. His inventions included improvements on paper bags, an updated fountain pen design, improvement to the hand stamp, and a close-conduit electric railway system.