inventorBorn: 1791Birthplace: New York, N.Y. A tailor in New York City, Jennings is credited with being the first African American to hold a U.S. patent. The patent, which was issued in 1821, was…
soldier, Congressional Medal of Honor recipientBorn: 4/26/1923Birthplace: San Marcos, Tex. As a private in the U.S. Army, Company B, 148th Infantry, during World War II, Rodriguez became an expert…
Children's book authorBorn: Feb. 10, 1930Birthplace: New York, N.Y. Born in New York City, Elaine Lobl grew up in small towns in Pennsylvania. She was the first member of her family to attend…
Born: 1900Birthplace: Bowling Green, Ohio Thio-barbituric acid derivatives—Volwiler and Tabern came up with Pentothal when they were seeking an anesthetic which could be injected directly into the…
Born: 1921Birthplace: Mount Vernon, N.Y Laser—Co-inventor of the laser. Schawlow worked with Charles H. Townes who was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame in 1976. Today the laser is prevalent…
Born: 1898Birthplace: Demopolis, Ala. PVC plastisols—Semon's work turned polyvinyl chloride (PVC), first considered worthless, into the world's second-best selling plastic. He also provided the…
Born: 1934Birthplace: Wakenda, Missouri Liquid crystal display (LCD)—Liquid crystal displays were originally based on a concept that used a large amount of powder, provided a limited life, and poor…
Born: 1819Birthplace: Danville, Pa. Typewriting machine—Publisher and politician Sholes invented the first practical typewriting machine (the name was coined by the Scientific American journal).…
theater producer, fund-raiser for the artsBorn: 3/12/1910Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan Real-estate mogul Stevens became a highly respected Broadway producer, often collaborating with Robert…
(Robert Lawrence Stine)authorBorn: 1/8/1943Birthplace: Columbus, Ohio Previously a junior high school teacher and an editor, Stine published his first book, How to Be Funny: An Extremely Silly…
