Chester Greenwood
Chester Greenwood | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 4, 1858 |
| Died | July 5, 1937 (aged 78) Farmington, Maine |
| Nationality | United States |
| Education | Public Farmington, ME schools and Wilton, ME Academy |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Spouse(s) | Sarah Isabel (Whittier) Greenwood |
| Children | Lester Clyde Greenwood, Donald Whittier Greenwood, Vodisa Emilie (Greenwood) Magoon, Clinton Whittier Greenwood |
| Parent(s) | Zina Hyde Greenwood (father), and Emily Merrill (Fellows) Greenwood (mother) |
| Engineering career | |
| Projects | earmuff |
Chester Greenwood (December 4, 1858 – July 5, 1937), of Farmington, Maine, invented the earmuff in 1873, at the age of 15.[1] He reportedly came up with the idea while ice skating and he asked his grandmother to sew tufts of fur between loops of wire.[2] His patent was for improved ear protectors. He manufactured these ear protectors, providing jobs for people in the Farmington area for nearly 60 years.[1]
Greenwood also patented a tea kettle, a variation of the steel-toothed rake, an advertising matchbox, and a machine used to produce wooden spools for wire and thread.[1] He invented, but did not patent, an umbrella holder for mail carriers. The total number of patents Greenwood held seems to be contested: Some claim only a handful, while others claim over 100.[3] The memory of the latter helps boost Greenwood's historical legacy.[4]
In addition to being an inventor, Greenwood was the owner of a bicycle business and a business involving an improved heating system. He also introduced one of the first telephone systems in Farmington.[5] He was an accomplished machinist, an active member of the community, a business developer, a member of the Unitarian Church and a family man. His wife, Isabel (née Whittier), was a supporter of woman suffrage. He and Isabel were parents of four children.
Chester Greenwood Day[edit]
In 1977, the State of Maine declared December 21 to be Chester Greenwood Day. Farmington continues to celebrate "Chester Greenwood Day" with a parade on the first Saturday of December.[6][7]
The Chester Greenwood House in Farmington is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Maine Secretary of State Kid's Page - Famous People
- ^ Dec. 4, 1858: It Was Very Cold the Day Chester Greenwood Was Born
- ^ David Sharp, “Maine Town Honoring Earmuff Inventor,” The Washington Post, December 1, 2007.
- ^ Alison McLean, “March Anniversaries: Momentous or Merely Memorable,” Smithsonian Magazine, March 2007
- ^ Ian M. G. Quimby. 1986. “Yankee Ingenuity Is Alive and Well in Maine: An Exhibition Review”. Review of Made in Maine; Made in Maine: An Historical Overview [exhibition Catalogue]. Winterthur Portfolio 21 (2/3): 186.
- ^ Farmington honors earmuff inventor today Portland Press Herald, December 4, 2010
- ^ Title 1, §117: Chester Greenwood Day
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