July 9
LET’S SEW DAY
OK, class. Who invented the sewing machine? Elias Howe, you say? Well, we were all taught that Elias Howe was the clever inventor; but that’s not exactly correct. Elias Howe only patented the lock stitch sewing machine. The device had already been invented by one Walter Hunt.
Walter was a really nice guy. He didn’t patent his invention because he didn’t want to put the many seamstresses of the time out of work. Elias didn’t care about such social issues. So he went ahead and patented the sewing machine.
Mr. Howe, however, ran into a lot of legal entanglements trying to get his patent rights because of those who tried to infringe on them, such as Isaac Singer. Maybe you know the name. In the long run, Elias Howe won; earning over two million dollars in royalties for his non-invention.
The question is, if Elias Howe hadn’t been born on this day in 1819, what would we be sewing with?
Those Were the Days, the Today in History service from 440 International
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