How Black Inventors Changed Your Life

Imagine life without ice cream! Thanks to a Black inventor from the 1830s, you don’t have to. In fact, we can thank Black women and men for many of the innovations, tools, and gadgets that have improved our lives. Often, though, these inventors were not given much recognition for their ideas.

“Our journey of innovation isn’t new or recent—it’s an untold story that’s existed for 400 years,” says James Howard. He’s a historian and executive director for the new Black Inventors Hall of Fame Museum, which is set to open in New Jersey in 2025. “From the moment we were brought on these shores and started living and working on these lands, our drive to innovate and sense to improve daily life has been evident.”

From a better mailbox to the ultimate toy water squirter, advancements made by Black Americans have changed the world. Read on to learn about some of the many incredible contributions made by these inventors.

Think of life without ice cream! You don’t have to, thanks to a Black inventor from the 1830s. In fact, we can thank Black women and men for many inventions. They’ve come up with ideas, tools, and gadgets that improve our lives. But often, these inventors were not given much credit for their ideas.

“Our journey of innovation isn’t new or recent—it’s an untold story that’s existed for 400 years,” says James Howard. He’s a historian and executive director for the new Black Inventors Hall of Fame Museum. It’s set to open in New Jersey in 2025. “From the moment we were brought on these shores and started living and working on these lands, our drive to innovate and sense to improve daily life has been evident.”

Black Americans have invented many things, from a better mailbox to the ultimate toy water squirter. Their inventions have changed the world. Read on to learn about some of their amazing contributions.

Joseph Saddler is better known as Grandmaster Flash. He didn’t invent turntables, but in the late-1970s, he was the first to use the vinyl-record players as instruments to make song mixes on the fly. Saddler also invented devices that allowed him to manipulate music played on turntables, such as a crossfader. This switch allows DJs to fade out music from one record while fading in sound from another. This way they can mix parts of the two songs together or transition from one song to the next without a break.

Joseph Saddler is better known as Grandmaster Flash. He didn’t invent turntables. But he found a new way to use the vinyl-record players in the late 1970s. He made song mixes on the fly with them. Saddler also invented devices to use with turntables. They allowed him to control music as it played. One device is the crossfader. With this switch, DJs can fade out music from one record and fade in sound from another. This way, they can mix parts of the two songs together. Or they can move from one song to the next without a break.

Madeline Turner got the idea for a juice pressing machine after being annoyed by the time-consuming task of squeezing oranges by hand. In her invention, fruit is fed through a hole in the top of the machine, then sliced in half, and squeezed between plates. Finally, fresh juice flows from a hole into a container. Juicers today work in a similar way. She received a patent for “Turner’s Fruit-Press” in 1916, which gave her legal rights to her creation.

Madeline Turner didn’t like squeezing oranges by hand. The task took too much time. So she got the idea for a juice pressing machine. In her invention, fruit is fed through a hole on top of the machine. Then it’s sliced in half and squeezed between plates. Finally, fresh juice flows from a hole into a container. Juicers today work in a similar way. She received a patent for “Turner’s Fruit-Press” in 1916. That gave her legal rights to her creation.

Before Philip Downing created the street mailbox in 1891, people had to travel to the post office if they wanted to mail letters. Other mailbox designs were tested out before Downing’s, but they had openings that would allow rain and snow inside. To protect the mail from the elements and keep it safe from thieves, Downing’s mailbox had a hinged door that closed automatically after dropping the mail into the box. When the hinged door was opened, another door inside the mailbox would close, blocking anything—or anyone—from getting at the mail.

Philip Downing created the street mailbox in 1891. Before that, people had to travel to the post office to mail letters. Other mailbox designs were tested before Downing’s. But their openings would allow rain and snow inside. Downing’s mailbox had a hinged door. After someone dropped mail into the box, the door closed automatically. This would protect the mail from the elements and from thieves. When the hinged door opened, another door inside the mailbox would close. It blocked anything—or anyone—from getting at the mail. 

Summertime will forever be more fun because of Lonnie Johnson. He was working as a NASA engineer in 1982, trying to create a new type of heat pump—a device that uses water to transfer heat. Suddenly, a burst of water shot out of a nozzle. Johnson thought the mechanism would make a great toy. He built a prototype, or early model, of a high-powered water gun using Plexiglas, plastic PVC piping, and a two-liter soda bottle. The Super Soaker was born!

Summertime will be more fun forever because of Lonnie Johnson. In 1982, he was working as a NASA engineer. Johnson was trying to create a new type of heat pump—a machine that uses water to transfer heat. Suddenly, water shot out of a nozzle. Johnson thought the device would make a great toy. He built a prototype of a high-powered water gun. This early model was made of Plexiglas, plastic PVC piping, and a two-liter soda bottle. The Super Soaker was born!

In 1837, Augustus Jackson opened a catering business in his hometown of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Along with creating famous ice cream flavors, like mint and strawberry, he invented the first eggless ice cream recipe. This made for a lighter version of the frozen dessert. He also added salt to his recipe. It improved the ice cream’s flavor and lowered its freezing point—the temperature at which a liquid becomes a solid—so it stayed colder longer. This paved the way for ice cream to be packaged and shipped without melting.

Augustus Jackson was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1837, he opened a catering business there. Jackson created famous ice cream flavors, like mint and strawberry. He also invented the first eggless ice cream recipe. This made for a lighter version of the frozen dessert. Jackson added salt to his recipe. It improved the ice cream’s flavor. The salt also lowered its freezing point—the temperature at which a liquid becomes a solid. As a result, the ice cream stayed colder longer. That meant ice cream could finally be packaged and shipped without melting.

Dennis Weatherby worked as a scientist in the 1980s at the company Procter & Gamble, creating different household cleaning solutions. At the time, dishwashing detergents contained dyes that would stain dishes in the presence of bleach. Weatherby developed a bleach-based detergent, now known as Cascade, that uses a yellow dye that doesn’t stain dishes and gives the soap its lemon-fresh smell.

Dennis Weatherby worked at the company Procter & Gamble in the 1980s. He was a scientist creating different household cleaning solutions. At the time, dyes in dishwashing detergents would stain dishes in the presence of bleach. Weatherby developed a bleach-based detergent, now known as Cascade. It uses a yellow dye that doesn’t stain dishes. The dye also gives the soap its lemon-fresh smell.

Lewis Latimer was an inventor with eight patents. One of those patents was for an improvement to Thomas Edison’s incandescent light bulb. Latimer created a bulb with a more durable carbon filament. Electricity passes through this wire inside a light bulb, causing it to heat up and glow. The innovation created bulbs that lasted much longer than Edison’s original design.

Lewis Latimer was an inventor with eight patents. One patent was for an improvement to Thomas Edison’s incandescent light bulb. Latimer created a bulb with a more durable carbon filament. Electricity passes through this wire inside a light bulb. That makes it heat up and glow. Latimer’s bulbs lasted much longer than Edison’s original design.

Alice Parker lived in northern New Jersey and heated her home with an indoor fireplace. But during the coldest winter days, her house would never get warm enough. In 1919, Parker designed the first furnace powered by natural gas. She also designed the ducts, or channels, that directed heat from the furnace to other parts of a home. Most homes built since then are still heated this way.

Alice Parker lived in northern New Jersey. She heated her home with an indoor fireplace. But on the coldest winter days, her house never got warm enough. In 1919, Parker designed the first furnace powered by natural gas. She also designed the furnace’s ducts, or channels. They directed heat from the furnace to other parts of a home. Most homes built since then are still heated this way.

George Washington Carver is often known as the “Peanut Man,” but he didn’t invent peanut butter, as many people believe. This agricultural scientist did, however, invent more than 300 products using the legume. Among his peanut-based inventions were soaps, lotions, and shampoos. His yummiest creation by far was chocolate-covered peanuts. But Carver’s most significant and often overlooked innovation was to suggest planting peanuts and sweet potatoes to replenish infertile soil after harvesting another crop. Bacteria in the roots of these crops produce nitrogen—a nutrient plants need to grow.

George Washington Carver is often known as the “Peanut Man.” He didn’t invent peanut butter, as many people believe. But this agricultural scientist did invent more than 300 products using the legume. His peanut-based inventions included soaps, lotions, and shampoos. By far, his yummiest creation was chocolate-covered peanuts. But Carver’s most important innovation is often overlooked. He suggested planting peanuts and sweet potatoes after harvesting another crop. This would replace the nutrients in infertile soil. Bacteria in the roots of these crops produce nitrogen. Plants need this nutrient to grow.

In 1897, John Lee Love, a carpenter in Fall River, Massachusetts, patented a hand-cranked pencil sharpener, similar to the wall-mounted ones used in classrooms. A person would insert a pencil into a metal cone on the device and then turn a handle. That caused a blade to rotate around the pencil’s tip, shaving it to a point. Love’s sharpener had a compartment to capture shavings and was portable, making it the precursor to the smaller, compact sharpeners many students carry in their pencil bags today.

John Lee Love was a carpenter in Fall River, Massachusetts. In 1897, he patented a hand-cranked pencil sharpener. It was like the wall-mounted ones used in classrooms. A person would insert a pencil into a metal cone on the device and then turn a handle. That caused a blade to rotate around the pencil’s tip and shave it to a point. Love’s sharpener had a compartment to capture shavings. It was also portable. That made it the forerunner of today’s smaller, compact sharpeners. Many students carry them in their pencil bags.