Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Life in America Today is Better Because of Their Inventions!

Hanging up in the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston, Texas is a large frame poster entitled: “Black Magic: The Magic of Black Inventors and Scientists.” Today’s tidbit comes from that poster.

There are over 130 inventions listed on that poster, including things like:

Safety Hood (Gas Mask) in 1914 by Garrett Morgan, who developed the first human hair straightener. This was standard equipment of soldiers in the field and saved thousand of lives. Morgan also invented the Traffic Signal in 1922.

Norbert Raileux’s inventions revolutionized the world’s sugar industry with his vacuum Pan and Sugar Refiner in 1843 and 1846. Jan Earnest Matzeliger invented the lashing machine which improved shoe making from 50 pair a day to 700 pair a day.

Elijah McCoy had over fifty patents from 1872 to 1898, including an ironing table, lawn sprinkler, and his lubrication system which greatly improved air brakes on trains and other vehicles. People soon invented the saying “It’s the real McCoy,” meaning that whatever it was, it was well made. Another man that made work easier and saved thousands of lives worldwide on trains was Andrew J. Beard, who invented the car coupler and rotary engine for trains.

Granville T. Woods received patents that were bought by GE, Westinghouse, Bell and Thomas Edison. This included the steam boiler furnace, electric railway, electric railway system, automatic air brake, telephone transmitter, and amusement apparatus.

Lewis H. Latimer worked with Alexander Graham Bell and drew the plans for his application for a patent for the telephone. Latimer also received patents on an electric lamp and manufacturing carbons.

Percy Lavon Julian was an organic chemist and invented a drug that reduces the pressure in the eye of people with glaucoma, a substance that put out oil and gas fires (which saved the lives of thousands of American troops during World War II); and produced a drug that relieved the suffers of arthritis.

Lloyd A. Hall discovered an improved way of preserving meat and foods containing fats and oils that are in use today in the meat industry. He also patented a process for curing bacon from six to fifteen days to only hours and over 95 other patents.

Daniel Hale Williams was the first person in medicine to successfully open up the chest and perform open heart surgery, making medical history. His patient, a black man, lived for 50 more years!

Louis Tompkins Wright and his daughter, Dr. Jane Wright, researched chemicals that attack and destroy cancer cells, a process we now call chemotherapy.

A few examples of other inventions by black Americans included:

Lawn mower, boot (improvement), shoe (improvement), letter box (mailbox), folding bed, stair climbing wheelchair, urinalysis machine, disposable syringe, medicine tray, dry cleaning process, home security system with television surveillance, the range gas burner, guitar, golf tee, spark plug, motor, wrench, portable weighing scales, bicycle frame, caps for bottles, envelope seal, pencil sharpener, fire extinguisher, lock coin changer, elevator, pressure cooker, hand stamp, fountain pen, typewriter improvement, clothes wringer, clothes drier, refrigerator, mop, fir escape ladder, sanitary belt, bathroom tissue holder, horseshoe, riding sales, wagon, umbrella stand, liniment, ventilated shoe, apparatus for melting snow, kitchen table, stainless steel pads, egg beater, animal trap, window cleaner, hair brush, printing press steam gage, register, dust pan, bottle, churn, propeller for vessels, razor strapping devise, scaffold, and oh, so many more!

The next time someone poses the question: “And just what have African Americans done to create wealth in America?” give them this article. Or, just have them drop into any African American bookstore, or go online and type in “African American Inventions.”

Next time: A few African American explorers also helped America.

What is October known for? Halloween? The Bilingual Child Month? Church Library Month? Church Safety and Security Month? Domestic Violence Awareness Month? Dyslexia Awareness Month? German American Heritage Month? Global Diversity Awareness Month? National Breast Cancer Awareness Month? National Crime Prevention Month? National Dental Hygiene Month? Polish American Heritage Month? Women’s Small Business Month?

Credit: http://www.brownielocks.com/october.html

You need to check out this web site…it may blow your mind:

http://www.freemaninstitute.com/RTGseminar.htm

And, here are some more:

www.Black101.com

www.BlackChurchMissions.org

www.RosettaStoneReplicas.com

DID YOU KNOW? There is another resource to help you learn more about Black History? Check out: www.yenoba.com

And another? Check out: http://www.blackhistorypages.net/index.php

SPECIAL NOTE:

Leave a legacy for future generations by helping to restore an armory for the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in 2010. Less than $4 million is needed for the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum to restore the historic Houston Light Guard Armory (1925). Buy a brick for $100 or $500 or $1,000 or $2,500 or $5,000. Have your name added in their “Legacy of Fame” hall. Get your NFL, NBA, or other professional sports relative to invest $1 million or more and thus give back to future generations by having a hall or room named after them. Get your relative in entertainment to donate $1 million or more and thus leave a legacy that will outlive them by having space dedicated to them.

Contact Ed Udell @ 832-216-7786 for your next speaker at your church conferences, youth meetings, community events, or for diversity programs, teaching writing grant writing, and/or teaching others about health/nutrition, and help for senior citizens.

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