Inventions By Women

The following is a partial list of the many ingenious inventions by women.

INVENTION	INVENTOR	YEAR
Alphabet blocks	Adeline D. T. Whitney	1882
Apgar tests, which evaluate a baby’s health upon birth	Virginia Apgar	1952
Chocolate-chip cookies	Ruth Wakefield	1930
Circular saw	Tabitha Babbitt	1812
Dishwasher	Josephine Cochran	1872
Disposable diaper	Marion Donovan	1950
Electric hot water heater	Ida Forbes	1917
Elevated railway	Mary Walton	1881
Engine muffler	El Dorado Jones	1917
Fire escape	Anna Connelly	1887
Globes	Ellen Fitz	1875
Ironing board	Sarah Boone	1892
Kevlar, a steel-like fiber used in radial tires, crash helmets, and bulletproof vests	Stephanie Kwolek	1966
Life raft	Maria Beaseley	1882
Liquid Paper®, a quick-drying liquid used to correct mistakes printed on paper	Bessie Nesmith	1951
Locomotive chimney	Mary Walton	1879
Medical syringe	Letitia Geer	1899
Paper-bag-making machine	Margaret Knight	1871
Rolling pin	Catherine Deiner	1891
Rotary engine	Margaret Knight	1904
Scotchgard™ fabric protector	Patsy O. Sherman	1956
Snugli® baby carrier	Ann Moore	1965
Street-cleaning machine	Florence Parpart	1900
Submarine lamp and telescope	Sarah Mather	1845
Windshield wiper	Mary Anderson	1903

Mystery Inventors

We'll probably never know how many women inventors there were. That's because in the early years of the United States, a woman could not get a patent in her own name. A patent is considered a kind of property, and until the late 1800s laws forbade women in most states from owning property or entering into legal agreements in their own names. Instead, a woman's property would be in the name of her father or husband.

For example, many people believe that Sybilla Masters was the first American woman inventor. In 1712 she developed a new corn mill, but was denied a patent because she was a woman. Three years later the patent was filed successfully in her husband's name.

Timeline of Everyday Inventions

Inventions

The National Inventors Hall of Fame