Garrett Augustus Morgan

• Born: March 4, 1877
• Birthplace: Paris, Kentucky
• Died: August 27, 1963
• Place of death: Cleveland, Ohio

Inventor and entrepreneur

Morgan is best known for inventions that paved the way for modern safety technology. He created the respiratory hood that evolved into the modern gas mask and patented a traffic light that was internationally used until the modern signal was invented.

Areas of achievement: Business; Invention; Science and technology

Early Life

Garrett Augustus Morgan, Sr., was born in 1877 to Sydney Morgan and Elizabeth Reed Morgan, both of whom were former slaves. Both parents were of mixed ancestry, but Morgan’s African American heritage greatly influenced his life and career. He was raised in Kentucky on the family farm with ten siblings. There, he completed elementary school. When Morgan turned fourteen, he moved from Kentucky to Cincinnati, Ohio. He quit school in order to work as a handyman but did continue his education with a private tutor. He then moved to Cleveland, Ohio, for a position repairing sewing machines.

Life’s Work

Morgan’s knack for instrument repair afforded him the opportunity to open his own sewing and shoe repair shop in 1907; he added a tailoring service in 1909. Morgan manufactured all the equipment for his business. He began experimenting with a liquid that prevented sewing machines from burning fabrics and acted as an ironing agent. Through this process, Morgan accidentally discovered that the same chemical preparation worked for straightening hair. He converted the liquid substance into a cream and manufactured it through a company called G. A. Morgan Hair Refining Company.

After learning of the tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, in which 146 garment workers died in a fire in New York, Morgan invented the original respiratory hood in 1914. The so-called Breathing Device, later known as the Morgan safety hood, functioned similarly to a gas mask. Morgan originally did not get proper credit for the invention because of his race. A white business partner was used as the face of the product to boost sales in the South. The invention won first prize at the Second International Exposition of Safety and Sanitation in 1914. Morgan’s hood was famously used to save the lives of some of the thirty-two workers trapped in the 1916 Lake Erie Crib Disaster, a tunnel explosion that released deadly fumes. Morgan gained national recognition for the invention and was even awarded the Medal of Bravery in Cleveland. He was nominated for the prestigious Carnegie Medal but did not win because he was African American. Firefighters used his hood, as did the U.S. Army and Navy during World War I.

A successful businessman, Morgan was one of few African Americans in Ohio able to afford a car. The many traffic accidents inspired him to invent a new traffic light. Like other traffic signals of the time it had “stop” and “go” features, but Morgan’s traffic light additionally had a stop position for traffic from all directions. This allowed pedestrians ample time to safely cross the road, a major danger during a time when pedestrians, bicyclists, and automobiles all shared the crowded roads. He was granted a patent in 1923 for a traffic light design that could be easily and cheaply manufactured. In fact, Morgan’s design was used until the modern-day traffic light was created when Morgan sold the rights to the General Electric Company. In 1963, the United States government awarded Morgan a citation for his traffic signal.

Throughout his lifetime, Morgan continued to invent products, including a smoke detector, a hair dye, straightening comb, zigzag sewing machine attachment, and hat and belt fasteners. He also formed the National Safety Device Company and the G. A. Morgan Safety System Company.

Morgan married his first wife, Madge Nelson, in 1896. The marriage ended in divorce. Morgan later remarried Mary Anne Hassek in 1908; the couple had three sons together. In 1908, Morgan cofounded the Cleveland Association of Colored Men, which actively fought racial discrimination and injustice. He was a member of the organization until 1914, when it became part of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Morgan remained active in the NAACP until his death. In the 1920’s, Morgan established the newspaper The Cleveland Call, which focused solely on reporting local and national news relevant to African Americans. In 1943, Morgan developed glaucoma. Despite becoming nearly blind, he continued to work on developing a self-extinguishing cigarette. Morgan died at the age of eighty-six.

Significance

Morgan’s practical and useful inventions served important functions in the early 1920’s; many remain in use decades later, having evolved along with technology. He created products that improved safety for people in dangerous situations. Morgan fought for many years to receive proper recognition for his accomplishments. Although he was denied certain honors during his lifetime, over time his efforts as an inventor and entrepreneur were accorded their due respect.

Bibliography

Evans, Harold, Gail Buckland, and David Lefer. “Garrett Augustus Morgan: He Came to the Rescue with His Gas Mask.” In They Made America: From the Steam Engine to the Search Engine, Two Centuries of Innovators. New York: Little, Brown, 2004. Detailed profile of Morgan that chronicles the development of his many inventions and his struggles to get credit for them.

King, William. “Guardian of the Public Safety: Garrett A. Morgan and the Lake Erie Crib Disaster.” The Journal of Negro History 70, nos. 1/2 (Winter/Spring, 1985): 1-13. Comprehensive account of the invention of the respiratory hood and its famous use at Lake Erie. Describes Morgan’s and his supporters’ countless attempts to win public acknowledgment that an African American man created the lifesaving product.

Murphy, Patricia. Garrett Morgan: Inventor of the Traffic Light and Gas Mask. Berkeley Heights, N.J.: Enslow, 2004. This biography for young audiences outlines Morgan’s most notable inventions.