How did lewis latimer die

Lewis Latimer is considered one of the 10 most important Black inventors of all time , not only for the sheer number of inventions created and patents secured but also for the magnitude of importance for his most famous discovery. Latimer was born on September 4, in Chelsea, Massachusetts. His parents were George and Rebecca Latimer, both runaway slaves who migrated to Massachusetts in from Virginia.

George Latimer was captured by his slave owner, who was determined to take him back to Virginia. His situation gained great notoriety, even reaching the Massachusetts Supreme Court. Eventually George was purchased by abolition supporters who set him free. In , along with W. Brown, Latimer co-invented an improved of a train water closet, a bathroom compartment for railroad trains.

In , Latimer was sought out as a draftsman by a teacher for deaf children.

10 facts about lewis latimer

The teacher had created a device and wanted Lewis to draft the drawing necessary for a patent application. The teacher was Alexander Graham Bell and the device was the telephone. Working late into the night, Latimer worked hard to finish the patent application, which was submitted on February 14, , just hours before another application was submitted by Elisha Gray for a similar device.

In , after moving to Bridgeport, Connecticut, Latimer was hired as the assistant manager and draftsman for U. Electric Lighting Company owned by Hiram Maxim. Maxim was the chief rival to Thomas Edison, the man who invented the electric light bulb. The light was composed of a glass bulb which surrounded a carbon wire filament, generally made of bamboo, paper or thread.