-Inventions in the Industrial Revolution 1800s

  • Battery

    Count Alessandro Volta invents the battery.
  • First Photograph

    Joseph Nicéphore Niépce was the first person to take a photograph. He took the picture by setting up a machine called the camera obscura in the window of his home in France. It took eight hours for the camera to take the picture.
  • Locomotive

    George Stephenson designs the first steam locomotive. Eventually makes travel over long distances much easier which also allows massive amounts of goods to be transported across land easily.
  • Propeller

    Englishmen, Francis Pettit Smith invents the propeller.
  • Typewriter

    American, W.A. Burt invents a typewriter. Allows papers and books to be written more efficiently
  • McCormick Reaper

    American, Cyrus McCormick invents the first commercially successful reaper. Reduces the amount of work needed to harvest crops. Production increases.
  • Corn Planter

    Henry Blair patents a corn planter, he is the second black person to receive a U.S. patent. Makes it far easier to plant one of the main staple crops of the North and Midwest
  • Wrench

    Solymon Merrick patents the wrench.
  • Calculator

    Charles Babbage invents a mechanical calculator
  • Photography

    Englishmen, Henry Talbot invents calotype photography.
  • Revolver

    Samuel Colt invented the first revolver. makes life on the frontier more and less dangerous. this invention is widely used in the Civil War
  • Telegraph

    Samuel Morse invents the telegraph. Begins a time of lightning fast communication
  • Morse Code

    Samual Morse invents Morse Code. This system of tones is used to turn the telegraph into an effective mode of communication
  • Hydrogen Fuel Cell

    Welshmen, Sir William Robert Grove conceives of the first hydrogen fuel cell.
  • Photograhy

    Frenchmen, Louis Daguerre and J.N. Niepce co-invent Daguerreotype photography.
  • Bicycle

    Kirkpatrick Macmillan invents a bicycle.
  • Grain Elevator

    Joseph Dart builds the first grain elevator. Makes daily life easier.
  • Mercerized Cotton

    Englishmen, John Mercer invents mercerized cotton. gives cotton a glossy glow. Improves the quality and astethitic apeal of cotton clothes.
  • Anesthesia for Desntistry

    Dr. William Morton, a Massachusetts dentist, is the first to use anesthesia for tooth extraction. Allows dentistry work to be done far less painfully making dentist appointments more pleasurable.
  • Antisceptics

    Hungarian, Ignaz Semmelweis invents antisceptics. A ground breaking invention in the medical industry still used today.
  • Dishwasher

    Joel Houghton was granted the first patent for a dishwasher. Makes home life easier for those who can afford it.
  • Gyroscope.

    Bessemer Process invented by Henry Bessemer, a new and easier way to convert iron into steel. This makes steel far easier to get and is used to make many things from sky-skrapers to knives.
  • Sleeping Train Car

    George Pullman invents the Pullman Sleeping Car for train travel. Makes long travel on trains more bearable.
  • Washing Machine

    Hamilton Smith patents the rotary washing machine. Makes home life far easier for those fortunate enough to have one.
  • Internal Combustion Engine

    Jean Lenoir invents an internal combustion engine. leads to the firts automobiles, motorcycles and many other motor driven vehicles.
  • Elevator Safety Brakes

    Elisha Otis patents elevator safety brakes, creating a safer elevator.
  • Cylinder Lock

    Linus Yale invents the Yale lock or cylinder lock. Makes door locks easier and cheaper to manufacture. Similar locks are still used today.
  • Machine Gun

    Richard Gatling patents his machine gun. Revolutionalizes war.
  • Plastic

    Alexander Parkes invents the first man-made plastic. Makes a lighter, cheaper solid to use in industry. Very widely used today.
  • Dynamite

    Alfred Nobel invents dynamite. An explosive that makes excavation easier and more dangerous. Still widely used today
  • Torpedo

    Englishmen Robert Whitehead invents a torpedo. A new weapon used to deystroy ships. Newer versions are still used today.
  • Modern Typewriter

    Christopher Scholes invents the first practical and modern typewriter. Typewriters are easily available. This revolutionalizes the business and writing worlds.
  • Air Brakes

    George Westinghouse invents air brakes.
  • Tungsten Steel

    Robert Mushet invents tungsten steel.
  • Traffic Lights

    J P Knight invents traffic lights.
  • Mail-Order Catalog

    A.M. Ward issues the first mail-order catalog. Makes products easily available for people in the back country.
  • Barbed Wire

    Joseph Glidden invents barbed wire.
  • Telephone

    Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone. Makes long distance instant comunication posible for the everyday person.
  • Internal Combustion Engine

    Nicolaus August Otto invents the first practical four-stroke internal combustion engine.
  • Movies

    Nicolaus August Otto invents the first practical four-stroke internal combustion engine.
  • Phonograph

    Thomas Edison invents the ylinder phonograph or tin foil phonograph. Makes home life more enjoyable to those who can afford it.
  • Phonograph

    Thomas Edison invents the ylinder phonograph or tin foil phonograph. Makes home life more enjoyable to those who can afford it.
  • Movies

    Eadweard Muybridge invents the first moving pictures or movies.
  • Electric Lightbulb

    Sir Joseph Wilson Swan was the first person to invent a practical and longer-lasting electric lightbulb, begins the electric revolution.
  • First Practical Light Bulb

    Thomas Edison invents the first practical and commercially available light bulb. Electric light soon becomes widely available making home life far easier.
  • Toilet Paper

    The British Perforated Paper Company invents a form of toilet paper.
  • Metal Detector

    Alexander Graham Bell invents the first crude metal detector.
  • Roll Film

    David Houston patents the roll film for cameras. Which allowed for millions of Americans to posses cameras and use them easily.
  • Player Piano

    Edward Leveaux patents the automatic player piano. A great entertainment peace for homes or restaurants for those who could afford it.
  • Steam Turbine

    Charles Parson patents the steam turbine
  • Cash Register

    James Ritty invents the first working, mechanical cash register. Changes business life drastically.
  • Fountain Pen

    Lewis Edson Waterman invents the first practical fountain pen..
  • Machine Gun

    Harim Maxim invents his machine gun.
  • Automobile

    Karl Benz invents the first practical automobile to be powered by an internal-combustion engine.
  • Motorcycle

    Gottlieb Daimler invents the first gas-engined motorcycle.
  • Motor Vehcle

    Gottlieb Daimler builds the world's first four-wheeled motor vehicle.
  • Coca Cola

    John Pemberton invents Coca Cola. A drink we all still drink today, minus the cocain of course.
  • Gramaphone

    Emile Berliner invents the gramophone.
  • Contact Lenses

    F.E. Muller and Adolph Fick invent the first wearable contact lenses. These are the beginning to the vast contact industry of today. They were not very practical at the time though.
  • Radar

    German, Heinrich Hertz invents radar. Still used today to detect airplanes, read the speed of moving objects, and many other things.
  • Radar

    German, Heinrich Hertz invents radar. Still used today to detect airplanes, read the speed of moving objects, and many other things.
  • AC Motor

    Nikola Tesla invents the AC motor and transformer.
  • Cordite

    Sir James Dewar and Sir Frederick Abel co-invent Cordite - a type of smokeless gunpowder.
  • Escalator

    Jesse W. Reno invents the escalator. newer versions are still in use today.
  • Diesel Engine

    Rudolf Diesel invents the diesel-fueled internal combustion engine.
  • Zipper

    American, W.L. Judson invents the zipper. Revolutionized the clothing industry.
  • Movie Camera

    Lumiere Brothers invent a portable motion-picture camera, film processing unit and projector called the Cinematographe. Lumiere Brothers using their Cinematographe are the first to present a projected motion picture to an audience of more that one person.
  • Rollar Coaster

    Edwin Prescott patents the roller coaster. Provides fun for the Whole Family! Begins amusement parks.
  • Vacum Cleaner

    John Thurman patents the motor-driven vacuum cleaner. Cheaper and more modern looking vacuum cleaner. Made life easier for the wealthy