furniture store with her carpenter husband.
While building furniture, Goode noticed that some of her neighbors were having trouble with fitting beds into their small apartments. That led her to invent fold-out beds that were known as cabinet beds at the time. She also became only the second Black woman to receive a U.S. patent for her invention.
6. Synthetic Bristle Brushes
Lydia D. Newman made significant strides in Black hair care in the 1890s. At that time, most hairbrushes were made with animal hairs and were too soft to effectively manipulate thicker hair.
These brushes were also harder to clean. As a result, Newman invented a synthetic bristle brush to use with Black women’s hair and received a patent for it.
7. HVAC Systems
Alice H. Parker was born in New Jersey but also lived in Washington D.C. The cold weather in these states led her to wonder if there was a way to efficiently heat an entire home that didn’t involve a wood-burning fireplace. This desire resulted in an invention that became the precursor of modern HVAC systems.
RELATED: Meet Inventor Alice Parker: The Woman Behind Central Heating
8. The Feeding Tube
Bessie Blount Griffin was working as a physical therapist at the end of World War II. When working with soldiers who were amputees, she noted that many of them had challenges with eating.
To help with that, she invented an electric self-feeding tube that released a small portion of food when the patient bit down. This helped with their independence and nutrition.
9. The Clothes Wringer
Ellen F. Englin made the process of washing clothes more manageable when she created the clothes wringer in 1888. The device was designed to remove excess water from clothes after they had been washed.
10. The Signal Chair
Miriam Elizabeth Benjamin wanted to make it easier for people to get the attention of others while at the doctor’s, at the movie theater, in a meeting with government officials, or at a hotel. This led to the invention of the signal chair that is used most often on airplanes to call to flight attendants.
The interesting thing is that this is far from an exhaustive list of the contributions that Black women have made. Black women have made even more contributions to technology, medicine, beauty, and more. They also continue to excel and put their marks in different industries.