Granville T' Woods

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Granville T. Woods

• The Black Edison

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Who is Granville T. Woods?

• Born in Columbus, Ohio on April 23,1856
• One of the first Black American Scientists
• Famous inventor having over 60 patents throughout
  his life
• Known as Black Edison
• Died January 30th, 1910

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Family

• Parents Tailer and Martha Woods
• One known brother Lyates
• No conclusive proof on his marital status
• Most accounts say he was never married
• One reference to a woman, Susie Elizabeth Woods,
  claiming to be the inventors wife

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Education and Work Experience

• Attended public school until age 10
• Then started working in a machine shop that
  repaired railroad equipment
• Received private instruction from master mechanic
  of machine shop
• At age 16, moved west and worked on a train
  stoking the fire
• Experimented with electricity on the side

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Education and Work Experience

• At age 20, he moved east and continued schooling
  at Technical school for mechanical/electrical
  engineering while working full time in machine
  shop
• Spent 2 years traveling around the world while
  working on a British steamer
• Then worked for a railroad handling steam
  locomotion in Cincinnati
• Finally opened Woods Elec. Co. in June 1886
• Took over his early patents

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Prejudice

• Granville T. Woods was denied work due to his
  ethnicity
• He was also prevented from advancing on the job
  even with a highly skilled background
• However he did not let this bother him and
  instead was inspired to open his own shop

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Inventions

• 1st patented invention was the improved Steam
  Boiler Furnace
• Developed device for transmitting messages by
  electricity
• Called the Telegraphony
• Allowed messages to be sent orally and in Morse
  Code over the same line

Granville Wood's first patent U.S.299,894 -
6/3/1884 - steam boiler furnace
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Inventions

• Induction Telegraph System
• System of communicating between moving trains
• Reduced number of train collisions and accidents
• Edison tried twice to steal the patent but Woods
  won both times

Patent U.S. 373,915 - 11/29/1887 - Induction
telegraph system
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Inventions

• Third Rail System
• Still used today in subway and elevated systems,
  and in commuter rail systems
• Electric Railway Conduit System
• Replace wire rope and pulleys with conductor
  rails
• 1st system to uses rails instead of wires

10
Inventions

• Brakes
• Electro-Magnetic Brake Apparatus
• Train brakes controlled by electricity
• Automatic Airbrake
• Redesigned George Westinghouse original airbrake
• Later, Woods sold his patent to Westinghouse

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Inventions

• Galvanic Battery
• Electrodes could be easily removed, cleaned and
  replace
• The ammonium chloride could be easily replenished
• Sturdy designed allowed Woods

12
Inventions

• Dynamotor
• Regulating electric motors, changing speed of
  rotating shaft of motor
• Challenged by other inventors but Woods won
• Incubator
• Predecessor to modern incubators

Patent U.S. 656,760 - 8/28/1900 - Incubator
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Defending his Inventions

• Woods had a major problem with having his
  inventions stolen
• Fought many court cases to defend his right to a
  patent
• This included cases against Edison and the
  American Engineering Company

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Looking to the Future

• Feared for his fellow African Americans
• Saw a critical need for education and presented
  ideas about the kind of schooling he felt was
  needed
• Key to Woods education plan was technical
  training but felt character should also be taught
• Woods once passed on this advice
• Refuse to become discouraged. Continue to apply
  for work after more than one refusal. The reason
  will include prejudice, but not always.

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Recognition

• Some recognition while he lived as a master of
  electricity and as an inventor
• 1974- Ohio Gov. John Gilligan issued a
  proclamation in Woods honor
• NYC subway system is currently working on
  creating some memorial in his honor
• For more information on this visit
• www.brooklynrail.com/Grandville_Woods.html

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Some of his Patents
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This list can be found at www.princeton.edu/mcbr
own/display/gwpatents.html