Every February we honor Black History Month. There are many African Americans who have contributed to help shape the American heritage & culture. Case in point, here are some famous inventions attributed to black inventors: the gas mask by Garett Morgan; the automatic elevator doors by Alexander Miles in 1887; the modern security system by Mary Van Brittan Brown; the traffic signal by Garret Morgan; the super soaker water gun by Lonnie Johnson; and the blood banking process by Dr. Charles Drew.
In 1891 Phillip Downing, after constantly walking to the Post Office in all kinds of weather, invented the first outdoor mailbox that featured a hinged door that kept the mail secure and dry. It also kept weather elements from them. Richard Spikes in 1932 invented the gear shift. In 1982, George T. Samson invented the first automatic dryer that used a series of suspension rods over a specifically designed stove to dry clothes. Other inventions by Black inventors: folding chairs in 1889; home security system in 1966; pacemaker in 1964; potato chips, 1935; thermostat temperature control in 1935; and the touch-tone telephone in 1987 by Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, who was the first African American woman to earn a doctorate in nuclear physics at MIT. Her experiments paved the way for the fiber-optic cable, caller ID, portable fax and touch-tone phones.
Let us celebrate those African Americans who helped shape our nation with their inventions, triumphs, despite adversities, this month of February.
Pastor Jacques A. Conway