Rutgers University
Blueprint for Change: The Life and Times of Lewis H. Latimer
An extensive look at the inventor, Lewis Latimer, from the Thomas Edison Papers at Rutgers University. Read essays about his life and inventions, the culture in Boston which encouraged his work, and his life outside his inventions. A...
Other
Black Inventor Online Museum: William Purvis
Read about the African-American inventor, William Purvis, who improved the fountain pen. Included is a list of his other inventions.
National Inventors Hall of Fame
National Inventors Hall of Fame: Thomas Alva Edison
This site honorsThomas Alva Edison as a historic inventor and focuses attention on his invention of the electric lamp.
University of Virginia
University of Virginia: Jefferson as an Inventor
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.
Rutgers University
Rutgers: The Thomas Edison Papers
Links to copies of papers written by Thomas Edison. Also includes biographical information and copies of his patents and companies.
PBS
Pbs American Experience: Edison's Miracle of Light
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...
Famous Scientists
Famous Scientists: Alexander Bain
Find out about the life and work of Alexander Bain, the Scottish inventor and engineer who was first to invent and patent the electric clock.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Inventor of the Week: James T. Russell
This site provides a biography of James T. Russell, inventor of the compact disk, and the basic ideas behind the technology.
The Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute: A Century of Development
The Franklin Institute looks at the invention of the Brownie camera, which helped put photography into the hands of amateurs and allowed the middle class to take their own snapshots as well in the early 20th century.
Great Idea Finder
Great Idea Finder: Lewis Howard Latimer
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...
Georgia Humanities Council and the University of Georgia Press.
New Georgia Encyclopedia: History and Archaeology: Eli Whitney in Georgia
Although Eli Whitney was born in Massachusetts, it was in Georgia that he invented the cotton gin in 1793.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Inventor of the Week: Samuel f.b. Morse
Provides a short biography of Samuel F.B. Morse, and his invention of the one-wire telegraph and the Morse Code. Also contains pictures.
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Libraries:industrial Drawings at the Smithsonian: Doodles & Drafts
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...
Curated OER
Black Inventor Online Museum: Lewis Latimer
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...
Curated OER
Black Inventor Online Museum: William Purvis
Read about the African-American inventor, William Purvis, who improved the fountain pen. Included is a list of his other inventions.
Other
California State Polytechnic University: Women Inventors: Sarah E. Goode
The hideaway bed was originally invented by a former slave and furniture store owner, Sarah E. Goode.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Inventor of the Week: Philo Farnsworth
Crack open a present day television today and it may not be as apparent, but every television designer is aware of the name Philo Farnsworth. Find out about the man behind the first all electric television among the 299 other patents...
Rutgers University
Thomas Edison Papers: Biography of Thomas Edison
The first person to make the storage battery practical, with 147 patents, Edison's life is a testimony to invention. This biography, in outline form, is in two parts; go to 1879 site after this.
National Inventors Hall of Fame
National Inventors Hall of Fame: Eli Whitney: Cotton Gin
Read about Eli Whitney's cotton gin and its importance to the cotton industry.
National Inventors Hall of Fame
National Inventors Hall of Fame: Roy J. Plunkett
This website provides biographical information about Roy J. Plunkett and his discovery of Teflon.
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Lee De Forest
American inventor Lee De Forest was a pioneer of radio and motion pictures. He received more than 300 patents over the course of his lifetime, the most important of which was for a three-electrode vacuum tube, or triode, that he called...
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
Magnet Academy: Nikola Tesla
Awarded more than 100 patents over the course of his lifetime, Nikola Tesla was a man of considerable genius and vision. He was reportedly born at exactly midnight during an electrical storm, an intriguing beginning for a man who would...
Other
Black Inventor Online Museum: Jan Matzeliger
A very complete biography of African-American inventor, Jan Matzeliger, who developed the shoe-lasting machine. Read about the development of his invention, and see pictures of the machine and the patent drawing.
Other
Museum of Ingenuity: Musee J. Armand Bombardier
The museum of Joseph Armand Bombardier(1907-1964), the Canadian inventor of the snowmobile. The museum offers its visitors a look into the personal and professional life of Bombardier as it outlines his achievements, patent information,...