Webkinz Insider

commodore · 09-10-2009, 02:14 AM

Hi everyone, welcome to the Thursday 10th September DCT.

I researched into today and was fascinated about the first patent for a sewing machine - so I hope this bit of history might be useful for you one day.

In 1846 Elias Howe was granted a patent for the sewing machine - he was the inventor of the first American-patented sewing machine.

Elias Howe was born in Spencer, Massachusetts on July 9, 1819. After he lost his factory job in the Panic of 1837, Howe moved from Spencer to Boston, where he found work in a machinist's shop. It was there that Elias Howe began tinkering with the idea of inventing a mechanical sewing machine.

Eight years later, Elias Howe demonstrated his machine to the public. At 250 stitches a minute, his lockstitch mechanism outstitched the output of five hand sewers with a reputation for speed. Elias Howe patented his lockstitch sewing machine on September 10, 1846 in New Hartford, Connecticut.

For the next nine years Howe struggled, first to enlist interest in his machine, then to protect his patent from imitators who refused to pay Howe royalties for using his designs. His lockstitch mechanism was adopted by others who were developing sewing machines of their own.

During this period, Isaac Singer invented the up-and-down motion mechanism, and Allen Wilson developed a rotary hook shuttle. Howe fought a legal battle against other inventors for his patent rights and won his suit in 1856.

Howe's sketches of his design:

Did you know that hand sewing is an art form that is over 20,000 years old? The first sewing needles were made of bones or animal horns and the first thread was made of animal sinew. Iron needles were invented in the 14th century. The first eyed needles appeared in the 15th century. Embroidery, needlepoint work and quilting are examples of hand stitching turned into an art form.

Competitors and earlier attempts:

1790, English inventor and cabinet maker, Thomas Saint was issued the first patent for a complete machine for sewing. It is not known if Saint actually built a working prototype of his invention. The patent describes an awl that punched a hole in leather and passed a needle through the hole. A later reproduction of Saint's invention based on his patent drawings did not work.
1810, German, Balthasar Krems invented an automatic machine for sewing caps. Krems did not patent his invention and it never functioned well.
1814, Austrian tailor, Josef Madersperger made several attempts at inventing a machine for sewing and was issued a patent . All of his attempts were considered unsuccessful.
1804, a French patent was granted to Thomas Stone and James Henderson for "a machine that emulated hand sewing." That same year a patent was granted to Scott John Duncan for an "embroidery machine with multiple needles." Both inventions failed and were soon forgotten by the public.
1818, the first American sewing machine was invented by John Adams Doge and John Knowles. Their machine failed to sew any useful amount of fabric before malfunctioning.

I certainly didn't know there was so much history surrounding the sewing machine - I hope you learnt as much as I did!

Have a great Thursday - remember to do your best at homework and study.