Student Reading 13.3: Getting to Know Ohio s Inventors How can you read in the dark? Would streets be safe without traffic lights? How did trains communicate to avoid collisions before computers? How do stores keep track of their sales? Ohioans have made important contributions to Ohio and the United States through creative innovations, or inventions. Many of these innovations were created due to problems recognized by people just like you. Thomas Alva Edison helped us to light up our homes and offices with the invention of the (Thomas Edison s phonograph. Courtesy of Ohio Pix.) electric light bulb. He was born in Milan, Ohio and is known to have over 1,100 patents. Edison is best known for inventing the electric light bulb and phonograph. Thomas Edison made such an impact with his electric light bulb that when he died, President Hoover requested that all electric lights be turned out for one minute out of respect for this great inventor. 1
After witnessing a traffic accident between a horse-drawn carriage and a car, Garrett Morgan invented the three-signal traffic light. The development of the three-signal traffic light has helped to prevent many accidents like this from happening again. Grandville Woods, born in Columbus, Ohio, saw a need for people to communicate over telegraph wires. The development of the multiplex telegraph did just that, it allowed trains to communicate faster. This helped to prevent many train accidents over the years. Granville Woods soon became known as the Black Edison, he had 60 patents, most of which had to do with improvements to the railway system. (Reproduction of a portrait of Granville T. Woods. Courtesy of Ohio Pix.) Charles R. Richter, born in Overpeck, 2
Ohio, is best known for the development of the Richter scale. The Richter scale measures the strength and size of earthquakes. We still use this system today. Two men, both from Ohio, are given credit for the development of chewing gum. Amos Tyler from Toledo, patented chewing gum but never sold it. William Semple, a dentist from Mount Vernon, Ohio, made chewing gum from rubber. He thought that the chewing gum would help to keep human teeth clean by adding charcoal and licorice root to the rubber. James Ritty, from Dayton, Ohio, tried to solve (This photograph shows an unidentified lathe operator at the National Cash Register Company in Dayton, Ohio. Courtesy of Ohio Pix.) the problem of his employees stealing money from him. With his invention, the cash register or thief catcher as it was also called, would record all sales made by the employee. The cash 3
register made it more difficult for employees to steal from their place of employment. Charles Kettering, born in Loudonville, Ohio, had a unique problem to solve. He was tired of using a hand-crank to start his car. Besides needing strength to turn the crank, cars would sometimes roll into the person turning the crank. To solve this problem, he developed the electric starter for cars. Murray Spangler was born in Pennsylvania but moved to stark County, Ohio and worked as a janitor. He developed a cough and soon realized this cough was from inhaling dust as he swept the floors at work. The sweeper he was using was not catching the dust. Spangler redesigned the sweeper adding a pillow case to collect the dust he swept up. This portable vacuum was the first to use a cloth filter to help collect the dust and dirt. The first gasoline-powered, single-cylinder automobile was invented by John William Lambert. He was born in Ohio City, Ohio. This new car had three 4
wheels and could reach speeds of 5 miles per hour. Lambert preferred to experiment in secret and did not share his inventions until they were complete. The Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville, were born in Dayton, Ohio. They had always been fascinated with flying and dreamed of one day building a flying machine. Their dream came true in 1903 when they took their invention, the Wright (The Wright Brothers Cycle Shop in Dayton, Ohio. Courtesy of Ohio Pix.) Flyer, to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina to test. The Wright Flyer stayed in the air for 12 seconds and flew 120 feet. Orville and Wilbur Wright are given credit for the first manned airplane flight and finally accomplished what had perplexed scientists and inventors for centuries. Sometimes new inventions come from experiments that don t work as planned. This is how Roy Plunkett discovered Teflon. Plunkett was born in New Carlisle, Ohio. He was working on a refrigeration gas experiment, but things did 5
not go as planned, there was a white powder that was left after the experiment. When he tested this powder he found it to be heat resistant and very slippery. Plunkett called this new substance Teflon. By applying Teflon to cookware, it made a non-stick surface. Now, eggs and pancakes would just slip right out of the pan. As you can see, Ohio inventors have made great contributions to benefit the United States and the world. With these innovations many cities and industries were able to grow and prosper. 6
Reading Comprehension Questions Name 1. Why was the cash register also known as the thief catcher? 2. What can you infer about the problem that Murray Spangler was trying to solve when he invented the vacuum cleaner? 3. What was interesting about Roy Plunkett s new discovery? 7
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