This article examines how the commercialization of scientific discoveries leads to conflict between proprietary rights to intellectual property, trade secrecy, and the maintenance of scientific norms. The first two inhibit the...

A very interesting look at popular medicine in the late 19th century. Read about home remedies, door-to-door patent-medicine salesmen, painkillers, and advertisements for such remedies. Find links to political cartoons related to popular...

A wonderful click-through slideshow of one of America's most-graceful examples of Gothic Revival architecture. The U.S. Patent Office Building, which dates from 1836, is now home to the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National...

This site, presented by the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, offers a peek into the life and inventions of Thomas Edison. Content is focused mainly on Edison's Menlo Park Laboratory and his invention of the first practical...

A map of eastern North America showing the territory of the King James Patent of 1606. The map is color-coded to show the territory granted the Plymouth Company and the London Company by King James I of England, which divided the...

Old Patent Office Building (Washington)

This section of a larger site on Thomas Jefferson discusses his involvement in the development of the patent system. Here, read about Jefferson's committment to science and his role as an inventor.

This site provides a biographical sketch of Alexander Graham Bell and his inventions. Find out about Bell's patents in addition to the telephone.

Links to copies of papers written by Thomas Edison. Also includes biographical information and copies of his patents and companies.

From the Smithsonian Institution this is "A Different Light", architectural photographs by Amy R. Boles of the renovation of the old Patent Office building in Washington D.C., presented here in an on-line exhibit.

This site explores the various challenges Edison faced upon attempting to produce electric power. It contains a historical essay, a complete list of Edison's patents, information on the AC and DC currents, recordings produced by the...

This site provides general information on Louis Pasteur (1822-1895 CE) and his patent number 135,245. The site also describes how he created pasteurization.

A copy of Henry VII's letter granting John Cabot permission to explore the New World and claim what he finds for England. Difficult to read, but an important primary source document.

An extensive biography of the life of African-American inventor, Lewis Latimer. Find out about his primary claim to fame in the development of an incandescent light bulb, but be sure to read about his many patents, and his importance to...

Drawing is a key element in an inventor's skill set. When it comes to the working out of new ideas, inventors turn to pencil and paper. Mixing art and science, this exhibition site showcases a collection of industrial drawings that...

A good description of the inventions and life of this bright and ambitious man. As inventor of the light bulb, phonograph, movie camera and many others, Edison lived a very inspiring life. In Spanish.

As the inventor of the lightbulb, phonograph, and the printing telegraph, Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931), improved the daily lives of everyday people.

The biography of the fascinating African-American inventor, Lewis Latimer. In addition to finding out about his development of the carbon filament for the incandescent lamp, you can read about his expertise in patent law, his association...

Current home of the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Read about the African-American inventor, William Purvis, who improved the fountain pen. Included is a list of his other inventions.

Available in both English and Dutch, this Library of Congress and Library of the Netherlands collaborative project offers over 11,000 digitized images relating to the Dutch in America. Includes a letter describing the purchase of...

Where did the idea of the QWERTY keyboard come from? Read about typewriter inventor, Christopher Sholes, and how he came up with his idea of a new keyboard design way back in 1875. Additional links to related sites, fascinating facts,...

An in-depth biography of inventor Nikola Tesla. Discusses his many inventions, his troubles with obsessive-compulsive disorder, and information on his multitude of patents.

Encyclopedia entry that defines a GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) graphics file and explains how and why it was created. Sections of the article include history, Unisys and LZW patent enforcement, usage, color, alternatives,...