Today in History – July 31, 1790 – first U.S. patent went to Samuel Hopkins for an improvement “in the making Pot ash and Pearl ash by a new Apparatus and Process.” President George Washington, Attorney General Edmund Randolph, and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson signed the patent. Only two other patents were granted that [...]

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Today in History-March 3, 1831–Thomas Jennings became the first African-American to receive a patent for his invention of ‘dry-scouring’, a process better known today as dry-cleaning. As a free man, he established a local business in New York in which he sold clothing. However, customers became disgruntled that there was no means to effectively clean [...]

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Today in History- March 1, 1864- Rebecca Lee Crumpler became the first African American woman to receive a medical degree and the only to receive a degree at the New England Female Medical College, which closed in 1873. Dr. Crumpler was born in Delaware to Absolum Davis and Matilda Webber in 1831. Interestingly enough, the [...]

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February is African American History Month. Celebrate by browsing the Engineering Pathway‘s resources on African American scientists, engineers & inventors and our computing and engineering diversity websites. Readers interested in inventions by African Americans may want to view the following blogs: Martin Luther King Day (January 20), Ice cream scoop invented (February 2), First patent [...]

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Today in History – February 10, 1874 – Water-closed railway cars patented by Lewis Latimer, U.S. patent (No. 147,363). Latimer is better known for his patents for improvement in incandescent electric lamps while working for Edison. In 1890 he published Incandescent Electric Lighting, a technical engineering book which became a guide for lighting engineers. February [...]

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