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Year: 1897​
Who: Andrew Jackson Beard (1849 – 1921)​
Where: Alabama​
What: Andrew Jackson Beard, born enslaved in Jefferson County, Alabama, on January 1, 1849, revolutionized railroad safety with his invention of the Jenny Coupler, an automatic car coupler. His invention dramatically reduced injuries and deaths among railroad workers, who previously risked life and limb while manually coupling railroad cars. Beard's Jenny Coupler automatically locked cars together upon impact, eliminating the need for workers to stand between them. This life-saving device earned him U.S. Patent No. 594,059 on November 23, 1897.
Beard’s invention was crucial in improving workplace safety for railroad workers, many of whom lost fingers, hands, or even their lives while coupling cars. His innovation was one of many improvements made to earlier couplers, particularly the knuckle coupler patented by Eli Janney in 1873. After patenting the Jenny Coupler, Beard sold the rights for $50,000—a significant sum equivalent to roughly $1.5 million today. His invention played a key role in the U.S. Congress passing the Federal Safety Appliance Act, which mandated the use of automatic couplers on trains.
Before his railroad safety innovations, Beard was an entrepreneur and inventor with a knack for practical solutions. He patented two plow improvements, one in 1881 (U.S. Patent No. 240,642) and another in 1887 (U.S. Patent No. 347,220), selling the rights to both and using the profits to invest in real estate. He also patented two rotary steam engines in the 1890s, further demonstrating his inventive abilities.
Despite having received no formal education, Beard’s contributions to agriculture and railroading left a lasting impact. He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2006 for his life-saving innovations in railcar coupling. Andrew Jackson Beard passed away on January 1, 1921, leaving behind a legacy of ingenuity and progress in American industry.
Websites:
MIT Press. (n.d.). 300 Years of African American Invention and Innovation. https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/300-years-of-african-american-invention-and-innovation/#easy-footnote-25-7368
National Inventors Hall of Fame. (n.d.). Andrew J. Beard. https://www.invent.org/inductees/andrew-j-beard
Books:
Burt Jr., M. (1989). Black Inventors of America. National Book Company, pp. 1, 18–20.
Carter-Ives, P. (1987). Creativity and Inventions: The Genius of Afro-Americans and Women in the United States and their Patents. Research Unlimited, pp. 29–31.
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